Marketing Lessons From American Idol – Adam Lambert vs Kris Allen

American Idol is NOTHING if it isn't about Marketing – the whole thing is designed around making money… here are some lessons from the 2009 season

So… did the best man win?

Maybe.

Did the best SINGER win?

No way.

But remember, American Idol is NOT a singing competition. Forget what Simon and Randy say about its being a singing competition – would Sanjaya have EVER MADE it onto the air in 2008 or William Hung seasons earlier.

No way.

Adam Lambert vs Kris Allen: Vocalist vs Nice Guy

Here are some marketing lessons that I have been hinting at for weeks on Twitter.

1. Adam Lambert can REALLY sing. He has a great instrument. (Hey, I'll put my own track record of singing, directing, CD producing, theater directing on the line and say I can tell a singer in "2 notes" (as they used to say on Name That Tune)). BUT… did all the "raccoon makeup" (as I read somewhere), nail polish, nearly goth-like clothing scare off his voting public?
2. Kris Allen is a really nice guy but NOT a great singer (see my credentials above). Close your eyes and just listen to him to see if his voice is what you want to hear on your next CD. NICE guy. Family guy. Has a beautiful wife and a dad who shares his emotions and cries. All makes for GREAT TV.
3. Simon was pushing WAY too much for Adam. Others were lavishing praise, but you could almost feel Simon's wallet screaming out to us: Vote For This Guy to make me even richer. Truth be told, Adam won't need #1 – he's still make it. His name will be remembered MUCH longer than… oh, right, who DID win it last year?
4. Kris was the better marketer. Did you notice the scruffy appearance when it was clear he would be put up against Adam – Adam who is single and rumors flying about his sexuality. Personally, I couldn't care less about anyone's sexuality – he or she is either a great performer or not. Some have made publicity off their sexuality and some have hidden from it. But Kris seized on this, scruffed it up, had video with his mom and dad, showed his wife and child, etc. Played great into the heartland of America.
5. Did you notice the final judges comments to Kris on Tuesday night? They were basically saying, "Hey, you're a nice guy, you did your best, you deserve to be on this stage, BUT… And the silent part was: "But you ain't gonna win." It was the most one-sided, We Love Adam display of the entire season. The coronation had taken place… except the American Public hadn't spoken yet. Do you think the public "sensed" this even if they weren't sitting there analyzing it as I was? You betcha.
6. Did you see Simon's face when Kris was announced the winner? He was dumbstruck. The other judges were smart enough to stand up and applaud the gallant winner but it took Simon until Kris and the rest of the gang were standing on the raised platform behind the judges before Simon acknowledged Kris by standing and shaking his hand.
7. And the biggest lesson: Somehow Kris spoke to his voting public and gave them what THEY wanted and Adam didn't. Was it Adam's high-note, tongue-showing display of power-singing (making many of his songs sound the same) vs. Kris's piano playing, guitar playing, just stand-there-and-sing style? Was it the nice boy vs the someone scary, hard-to-feel-comfortable-with guy? And who were the voters – teens that will scream for Kris vs rockers who will scream WITH Adam?

Whatever the reason, Kris resonated with his "customers" and Adam didn't.

Some other comments about marketing from American Idol:

• Ford should use their commercials MUCH longer than just on American Idol show nights. Showing young Americans having fun in their cars will work well for them. They NEED some great publicity now, and their normal commercials sure haven't done the trick.
• Did you notice how American Idol was selling the TOUR last night? Hey, they didn't have to say, "Here's our commercial for the tour," but some of the group numbers will (mark my words) be the exact numbers used on tour. They've already started rehearsing. And by showing them during the final (and sometimes boring show – if it weren't for the stars on the show, those who have already "made it," no one would watch for 2 hours knowing that all they want to see is the results at 11 PM), they are saying, "See how good this group is – come see us LIVE and help us make MORE money!" (Hey, as a marketer I don't say that with SCORN, but with PRIDE!)
• If American Idol isn't getting the names and email addresses from everyone going to iTunes to download songs, they sure are missing a great opportunity. WHY would they let Apple build such a HUGE list of buyers (everyone must log in before downloading a song, so APPLE knows who the customers are, even if Idol doesn't)? Why aren't they selling all of this by themselves. This is ONE franchise that doesn't NEED iTunes… they could keep all the money, build a MEGA LIST, and become even richer.
• The producers of American Idol KNOW they are doing TV and not a singing contest (I referred a bit to this earlier). They know the first few weeks of the show set the tone for the season. They know that showing behind-the-scenes, emotion-packed stories of the contestants build loyalty and understanding with their fans, I mean, consumers. And they know that letting Ryan Seacrest chat with the contestants (I mean cast members of this TV show) let's us inside, building rapport between us and the person "selling" us their music.

Oh, yes… American Idol is FILLED with marketing lessons when you stop to look at it that way. Believe me, the owners of the show and Fox TV sure look at it that way.

Viewership may have dropped significantly, but it's still TV's #1 rated show.

Long may it live. I love seeing the marketing lessons (those they TEACH and those they need to LEARN).

Best,

Charlie Seymour Jr
A Work At Home Dad, succeeding in this economy

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