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S02.E05: Beyond The Tank Episode 205


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This episode was a nice mix of what can happen after a deal is made. The Tower and Wicked Good segments should how to expand the core product, the Squatty Potty segment showed how to market the product, and the steak button (can't remember the company name) segment showed that running a company may not always be the best choice for the inventor, but that there are other ways to make money. The segments are obviously staged reenactments ( I doubt Amazon would allow cameras in before a deal was made), but still interesting portrayals of what goes on in a business.

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If only they focused on the more well known Squatty Potty ad. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbYWhdLO43Q I recently saw this and cracked up...then realized I can't eat soft serve ice cream anymore.

Did I see here that Lori hated that video and advised them against it, but it went viral?

I really dislike Lori. Everything seems like an act with her.

I thought Kevin was going to cry about the cupcakes.

They were called Grill Charms, but I think "meat button" is pretty funny.

Edited by bilgistic
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Yeah, clearly Lori had editorial control of what we saw, because by all accounts she hated the unicorn video, which was a viral hit. I love my Squatty Potty (it was a game changer for me) and follow them on social media. I've seen the unicorn video posted all over, and I've never seen the video they were filming on the show. I think Lori's a joke anyway, but this just goes to show that she's not going to let them show her being totally wrong about something. Between that and her genius (snort) "Bagel Stuffins" name, she's not the branding genius she thinks she is.

http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/squatty-pottys-ceo-ignored-everyone-made-insane-video-and-boosted-sales-600-168526

Edited by Shibori
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I think Lori is very good at marketing towards a very specific type of person.  She's not edgy or ultra-creative or risky.  She's savvy at gearing her stuff towards mainstream, middle America, QVC audience.  Her people buy grocery products with names like "Bagel Stuffins", and go crazy for sponges or phone cases that look like teeny purses.  And there's nothing wrong with that-- it's made her very successful-- it just means that if you aren't a mass market product with an eye towards mass market appeal, she's not the right partner. 

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I'd forgotten about Grill Charms.  I can't remember the last time they did an update on a Season 1 deal.

 

Lori also knows her market.  Notice how often she comments "I saw that on Doctor Oz" not "I saw that in the New England Journal of Medicine."

 

It's weird, but the Wicked Good segment made me think that Kevin's royalty deals aren't as bad as they look on the surface.

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It's weird, but the Wicked Good segment made me think that Kevin's royalty deals aren't as bad as they look on the surface.

Well he provides everything in an equity deal he doesn't just hand over the money then take a royalty like some other investors would. So he is involved to make the most money. Royalty can over time be less then say what the equity would cost the business owner. 

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No branding expert has a 100% hit rate, and even the absolutely best marketing experts whiff on some decisions. It's not a scientific process. Even when you have data to back up your decisions nothing is certain. Despite being fond of her personality, Lori has a pretty good track record. It's hard to fault her for thinking that a video about a unicorn pooping ice cream isn't going to work.

 

 

I think Lori is very good at marketing towards a very specific type of person.  She's not edgy or ultra-creative or risky.  She's savvy at gearing her stuff towards mainstream, middle America, QVC audience.  Her people buy grocery products with names like "Bagel Stuffins", and go crazy for sponges or phone cases that look like teeny purses.  And there's nothing wrong with that-- it's made her very successful-- it just means that if you aren't a mass market product with an eye towards mass market appeal, she's not the right partner.

 

I honestly don't understand. You say she's great at marketing toward mainstream, middle America and then say she's not the right partner for mass market products. If by "mass market" you mean she has yet to create something that's hip and cool with 13-25 year olds for all of 5 minutes, but instead she is great at marketing products toward working people who actually spend money, then sure.

 

(Damn. I never thought I'd become a Lori Greiner apologist. How did this happen? Time to find a thread on the kitchen safe and the power strip with a wood grain so I can really lay it on her.)

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It's hard to fault her for thinking that a video about a unicorn pooping ice cream isn't going to work.

As the article notes "Even Squatty Potty's other founders, Edwards' parents, weren't keen on the royal-themed, scatological joke-filled digital short."

 

Viral videos can be a huge miss or backfire badly. Not every one who intends to make a viral video or local tv commercial that becomes famous  has the talents of Rhett and Link when it comes to off beatness. This is an example of what it takes to make such a video https://youtu.be/q-RLqLx1iYI?list=PL1C494D754EA8475Fand have it be a viral hit rather then a miss.

Edited by nobodyyoucare
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No branding expert has a 100% hit rate, and even the absolutely best marketing experts whiff on some decisions. It's not a scientific process. Even when you have data to back up your decisions nothing is certain. Despite being fond of her personality, Lori has a pretty good track record. It's hard to fault her for thinking that a video about a unicorn pooping ice cream isn't going to work.

 

 

I honestly don't understand. You say she's great at marketing toward mainstream, middle America and then say she's not the right partner for mass market products. If by "mass market" you mean she has yet to create something that's hip and cool with 13-25 year olds for all of 5 minutes, but instead she is great at marketing products toward working people who actually spend money, then sure.

 

(Damn. I never thought I'd become a Lori Greiner apologist. How did this happen? Time to find a thread on the kitchen safe and the power strip with a wood grain so I can really lay it on her.)

I said she's NOT the right partner for NOT mass market products, and she IS the right partner for mass market.  My words were; "if you aren't a mass market product with an eye towards mass market appeal, she's not the right partner."  You read it as the opposite of what I said.  We are agreeing that she's good at mass market.

 

As for young hipsters not spending lots of money on short-term trends? We'll have to agree to disagree on that one.

Edited by marny
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(Damn. I never thought I'd become a Lori Greiner apologist. How did this happen? Time to find a thread on the kitchen safe and the power strip with a wood grain so I can really lay it on her.)

I think Beyond the Tank is really turning some of us.  And I don't like it one bit.

 

Maybe we should all watch the one with the password app and be reminded about how she knows women are just too stupid to use computers.  Or, just go back a few seasons to her side-pony look.  That by itself filled me with rage.

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If only they focused on the more well known Squatty Potty ad. 

I recently saw this and cracked up...then realized I can't eat soft serve ice cream anymore.

 

That has got to be done by the same people that do those hilarious PooPourri ads.

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I'd forgotten about Grill Charms.  I can't remember the last time they did an update on a Season 1 deal.

I remember it felt like there seemed to be an update every season on Ava the Elephant. But when they did the update where Barbara exchanged her shares on Ava the Elephant, resulting in another company now owning Ava the Elephant, the updates stopped.

 

But yeah, they don't do much Season 1 deals updates. If not for this update on Grill Charms, you would think the only deal that got completed on Season 1 was Ava the Elephant.

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