No. 339: En defensa de Tim Armstrong

DTX - DTC DÍA

Tim Armstrong no se equivoca. DTX " en DTX Company es la abreviatura de "Direct to Everything" (Directo a todo); el fondo espera aportar una chispa proverbial a esta era del comercio minorista en línea. Tim Armstrong, antiguo Consejero Delegado de Oath, anunció el lanzamiento de su última empresa con la siguiente declaración de intenciones:

Invertimos en fundadores impulsados por su misión que son líderes en la economía de marca directa. Estamos construyendo la infraestructura para la economía de marca directa mediante la creación de experiencias, el diseño de plataformas y la inversión en fundadores y talento. [1]

DTX es en parte un fondo de riesgo y en parte un amplificador de marcas DTC. El fondo ya ha invertido en seis empresas nativas digitales bien establecidas, con una tesis de inversión centrada en su atractivo para los influyentes consumidores millennials de DTC. Volveré sobre la importancia de la influencia al final.

El 6 de noviembre, su empresa DTX se puso en contacto con 120 marcas de venta directa al consumidor, haciéndoles la invitación de unirse a DTX como socios oficiales en el DTC Friday inaugural, el último evento de venta al por menor hecho por el hombre. Armstrong se une así a Jack Ma y Jeff Bezos. El evento, de un día de duración, contó con la participación de las empresas de la cartera de DTX y unas 110 más que Armstrong reclutó. Apenas siete días después, se anunció la jornada y, el viernes siguiente, el antiguo CEOde Oath acudió a la CNBC para explicar su visión de las marcas nativas digitales.

Se trata realmente de tener una alternativa a las plataformas [FAANG]. [...] Queremos trasladarlo todo a los bordes.

La promesa del evento era sencilla: DTX se anunciaría ante 150 millones de consumidores potenciales. Sin embargo, no funcionó para muchas de las marcas asociadas. Fred Perrotta, de mochilas Tortuga, informó:

Desde las 10 de la mañana hora del Pacífico, dtcfriday.com nos ha enviado 14 visitantes, casi tantos como Duck Duck Go.Tuvimos mejores resultados cuando Bitcoin Black Friday todavía estaba activo.

Dirigida por el cofundador y CEO Matt Bahr, Enquire es una empresa SaaS que realiza encuestas de atribución para cientos de tiendas Shopify. La plataforma de Bahr trabaja con 15 de las 120 marcas que se asociaron con DTX Company. En total, esas marcas obtuvieron diez ventas atribuidas a los esfuerzos de DTX Company.

Analizamos datos anónimos de respuestas a encuestas y parámetros UTM de las marcas de DTC Friday con las que trabajamos. Varias de ellas se destacaban en el sitio web de DTC Friday y descubrimos que menos de una docena de pedidos se atribuían a la campaña. Desde nuestra experiencia trabajando con marcas directas al consumidor, esto no es demasiado sorprendente. El enfoque generalizado de los medios de comunicación no suele ser eficaz para impulsar las conversiones en periodos de tiempo tan cortos.

Nik Sharma, uno de los 29 "Young Influentials in branding" de AdWeek, también trabaja con una selección de marcas que aparecen en DTX. En sus palabras: "No tuve ninguna marca que lograra ningún aumento". Sin embargo, hubo comentarios positivos. Según la fundadora de Andie , Melanie Travis, "[DTX Company] me había pedido que no compartiera cifras todavía, pero estoy entusiasmada con los primeros resultados". Según Google Trends, el interés por las búsquedas de Andie Swim alcanzó su nivel más bajo en siete días, el viernes de DTC.

Para quienes siguen la trayectoria de la empresa DTX, ha abundado el escepticismo. Ya he mencionado la composición del equipo de Armstrong. De los 29 empleados, cero han sido antiguos fundadores de marcas nativas digitales. Hay poca o ninguna experiencia práctica entre las paredes de una empresa encargada de revolucionar la captación de clientes para DTC. Hay poco del instinto que ha llevado a ciertas marcas a valoraciones y salidas desorbitadas.

En cambio, para preparar a Rimowa , competidora de Away, para la era DTC, LVMH contrató al antiguo fundador de Raden, Josh Udashkin, poco después de que su marca de maletas cerrara. Su experiencia práctica ha informado las decisiones tácticas de Rimowa durante más de dos años. Es esta falta de experiencia práctica lo que convenció al fundador de Lean Luxe , Paul Munford, para hacer este mordaz comentario:

Por lo que tengo entendido anecdóticamente, el viernes de DTC fue un fracaso. ¿Estoy sorprendido? No. Me acobardé cuando me enteré de que se iba a celebrar y, desde luego, no parece encajar con el espíritu del espacio de la DNVB. Parece que hay una gran arrogancia aquí al pensar que sólo por decretar esto como un nuevo día festivo, se convertiría instantáneamente en un evento masivo como el Black Friday para las DNVBs, que es una motivación horrible por sí sola.

Ahora entiendo la necesidad de un mercado centralizado para el espacio. Y creo que DTC Friday debía desempeñar ese papel. Pero la ejecución parecía fallida, no parecía haber un esfuerzo cohesivo en el lanzamiento, y he oído comentarios contradictorios de la gente que participó.

En mi opinión, no fue un fracaso. A pesar de los malos comentarios de algunos operadores de marca, el viernes de DTC probablemente cumplió su propósito. Tim Armstrong no se equivoca, se adelanta. El esfuerzo de DTX para lanzar el DTC Friday 2019 no fue diseñado para priorizar las marcas anunciantes. El objetivo era publicitar Flowcode, un rebrand supuestamente avanzado del concepto de código QR que fue descartado en los Estados Unidos, hace varios años. La estrella de cada uno de los anuncios de televisión, carteles callejeros y esfuerzos de listas blancas de influencers de la fiesta minorista no eran trajes de baño, ropa masculina de tejido técnico, ropa infantil o una bebida relajante. Tampoco eran las estrellas los propios fundadores.

En cada caso, la propiedad más destacada de cada anuncio era el Flowcode de Armstrong. DTX discriminó en sus inversiones publicitarias. Mientras que algunas marcas no experimentaron ninguna o muy poca mejora, hay pruebas que me llevan a concluir que una selección de marcas recibió el tratamiento real. Y se beneficiaron de ello. La petición de silencio de Andie tiene más sentido en este contexto.

Gasto estimado de Armstrong en Rockets of Awesome: 35.000 $.

Gasto estimado de Armstrong en Andie: 45.000 dólares.

Gasto estimado de Armstrong en Ródano: 27.000 $.

Gasto estimado de Armstrong en Recess: 65.000 $.

Flowcode, cultura QR y penetración del comercio minorista en línea

Captura de pantalla 2019-11-19 a las 12.50.49 AM
Usuarios de monedero móvil: Estados Unidos de América (2019)

El comercio se ha democratizado y, gracias a plataformas como Facebook y Google, la atención se ha centralizado. Según el Presidente y Director de Operaciones de Loop Returns:

A medida que la atención se descentralice, las marcas tendrán la oportunidad de construir canales de comunicación DTC con los consumidores. DTX y Flowcode parecen un experimento temprano en este género. Puede que no acierten (es probable que no lo hagan), pero eso no significa que se equivoquen.

Vale la pena mencionar que cuando Tim Armstrong hizo los comentarios (abajo), fue malinterpretado por muchos.

La estructura de distribución de las redes sociales, las búsquedas, YouTube y sus formatos publicitarios permiten a estas empresas poner todo lo que tienen en su catálogo de productos directamente delante de los consumidores. El espacio de pagos, aunque complicado ahora, está a punto de volverse mucho más fácil. Y los sistemas que se están construyendo ahora permiten a las empresas establecer relaciones directas y en tiempo real con los consumidores.

Armstrong mantiene un notable desdén por la influencia de las FAANG en los medios de comunicación y el comercio, un hecho que sale a relucir en cada bocado sonoro o artículo sobre su trabajo con DTX. Sus soluciones son sólidas, pero incipientes. Aunque hemos visto grandes mejoras en los sistemas de pago en Norteamérica con la adopción de Apple Pay, Android Pay, Square Cash, Venmo, la llegada de Amazon Go y la expansión de otras soluciones digitales, Estados Unidos sigue por detrás de China y otros países asiáticos.

Captura de pantalla 2019-11-19 a las 12.56.52 AM
Comercio electrónico en China en % del comercio minorista

El comercio electrónico, un indicador rezagado, sigue representando un escaso 12% del total del comercio minorista en Estados Unidos. En comparación, esta cifra roza el 39% en China. La principal diferencia entre los dos índices de penetración puede atribuirse a la adopción del monedero móvil. En China, casi todos los ciudadanos utilizan los pagos móviles en su vida cotidiana. En el país, WeChat Pay y AliPay están tan extendidos que a los turistas les resulta difícil realizar transacciones sin ellos.

Los viajeros han tenido más suerte con Alipay, que introdujo la semana pasada un proceso de siete pasos que exige a los visitantes enviar a Alipay información sobre el pasaporte y el visado, antes de cargar dinero con una tarjeta del extranjero en una tarjeta prepago.[2]

Y he aquí por qué los datos son importantes. La atribución de offline a online ha sido difícil para los profesionales del marketing. En Estados Unidos, la atribución offline se realiza principalmente de forma manual para vallas publicitarias, folletos, publicidad por correo y activaciones físicas. Las marcas realizan encuestas o solicitan datos de atribución. En China, sin embargo, los códigos QR impulsan las ventas y la atribución a escala[3]. [3] Dado el flujo de innovaciones en el comercio minorista de China a Estados Unidos, está claro que cuando Armstrong habla de "facilitar" los pagos, anticipa la adopción de carteras móviles y sistemas de pago simplificados. ¿Por qué? La prevalencia de estos sistemas se correlacionó con una adopción masiva del uso de códigos QR en China.

A principios de esta década, la mayoría de los chinos seguían llevando dinero en efectivo a todas partes y las tarjetas de crédito apenas se utilizaban fuera de las grandes ciudades. Pero cuando la gente empezó a ganar más, estaba claro que necesitaba una nueva forma de pagar sin llevar fajos de billetes.[3]

Puede que el viernes de DTC no haya sido un día de ventas exitoso para la mayoría de los estándares, pero fue una forma eficaz de reclutar marcas populares para comercializar un concepto del que Estados Unidos se reía tan solo unos años antes.

En Estados Unidos existen barreras para el futuro que imagina Armstrong. Aquí, América está sobre-vendida. Hay más tiendas de ladrillo y mortero, per cápita, que en cualquier otro lugar de la Tierra. La industria del desarrollo inmobiliario es tan predominante que el ladrillo y el mortero se han convertido en el mayor obstáculo del comercio electrónico. Somos menos propensos a adoptar los pagos móviles y cuando podemos utilizar tarjetas de débito en la mayoría de las tiendas físicas.

Así que, mientras tanto, lo mejor es que las marcas nativas digitales aprovechen los métodos de los minoristas tradicionales para alcanzar escala. Sin embargo, la hipótesis de Armstrong acabará siendo cierta. El tiempo dirá si es la empresa DTX la que vive para llevarse el mérito de este cambio en el comportamiento de los consumidores. La curva de difusión de la innovación no favorece a Armstrong. Dependerá de DTX y de su banda de leales al DTC, como Andie, Recess, Rockets of Awesome y Rhone, persuadir a los millennials entendidos para que cambien su comportamiento de compra. Si no, Flowcode de Armstrong podría ser el Webvan de DoorDash o UberEats de otro innovador. El tiempo y la velocidad de adopción determinarán quién se lleva el mérito de la venta. Y ese puede ser un problema de atribución que ni siquiera Armstrong puede resolver.

Investigación e informe de Web Smith | Sobre las 2PM

No. 338: UpWest and Hygge

Hygge-2PM

A publicly-traded retailer launched a DTC brand. This is a deep dive into their reasoning, the build, and their internal expectations. 

Middle-class retail is at an impasse. Since the beginning of 2019, there have been 19 bankruptcies to include Forever 21, Gymboree, Charlotte Russe, Payless ShoeSource, Diesel, and Destination Maternity. And there are another eight retailers at risk to include: J.C. Penney, Neiman Marcus, J. Crew, and Hudson’s Bay. In Gilded Age 2.0, I explain that our current retail era signals a casualty of the middle class consumer; a class that once emerged in response to the industrial and financial booms of the late 19th century and the governmental reforms of the mid-20th century.

With a flailing gig economy, stagnant wages, and rising personal debts, 2019 presents a break from the mid-century momentum that defined the 20th century. We are beginning to hear faint echoes of an earlier time of boom or bust and feast or famine. Rather than appealing to pure luxury consumers or fast fashion-loving millennials, the “long middle: erroneously remains the bullseye of the target. Retailers have been slow to optimize for a new market of coveted consumers.

In a recent report by Business of Fashion proclaimed that America still doesn’t have an answer to LVMH. They explain:

Spoilt for choice, consumers are less interested in mid-priced products available at scale: they want dangerously affordable fast fashion or pure luxury. (And preferably at a discount.) It’s harder for consumers to see the value in something that is not cheap but not that expensive, either. Especially if it’s not utterly unique. That’s a problem for Tapestry in particular, which deals exclusively in accessible luxury. [1]

Against the backdrop of abundant choice and a bifurcating market, Ohio retailer Express launched a new brand. Express is currently trading at a $265 million market cap with north of $2b in sales. The cost of that revenue is extraordinarily high compared to healthier retailers. Trailing twelve months, Ralph Lauren Corporation earned north of $6.5 billion with a $2.45 billion cost of revenue.

In contrast, Express earned (TTM) north of $2.1 billion with a $1.5 billion cost of revenue. A 25% gross profit margin heading into a crucial holiday season, the Columbus-based retailer hopes to use the DTC initiative to improve their long-term outlook. The effort has been met with a mix of pessimism and optimism. 

Pierre Kim of Away: 

For years, retailers have been criticized for not evolving quickly enough to meet the demands of their customers, so what do they have to lose with this new strategy? Their core labels may be faltering, but they still have brand equity. Why not use it to experiment and launch new businesses?  [2]

Paul Munford of Lean Luxe: 

There’s baggage associated with being under a legacy retailer’s umbrella—it decreases the value of the brand to the savvy consumer,” he said. “However, execution will always ultimately be the key here. Spinoffs need to feel like their own entity, as opposed to a sub-brand of the legacy retailer. [2]

There are merits to both arguments. And a little bit of digging provided more clarity for this report. Under the umbrella of Les Wexner’s Limited Brands, Express launched as women’s clothier “Limited Express” in 1980 Chicago. Led by CEO Michael Weiss, the brand expanded to eight stores in 1981 and by 1986, Express began a test for menswear in 16 of its 250 stores. The men’s line spun out as Structure in 1989.

I remember the brand very clearly. As a twelve year old in 1995, the halls of my middle school were split between the haves and the have nots. For the ones with, shirts by Polo and Structure were the daily wears and all I could remember is the sensation of having neither.

4
Remember this?

The advancements that Express made during that 20 year run are astounding to think about. In 2001, Express became a dual gender brand – a pivot that Madewell is currently attempting to execute. Structure “sold” to Express, or at least that’s how I remembered it. Because immediately, I became a fan of Express. In actuality, the brand was owned by the same holding company. It funneled its mens business to a brand that provided more opportunity. L Brands then, quietly, sold the mark to Sears in 2003. The Structure brand was never heard from again.

Express is no longer owned by L Brands, one of the most prolific builders of retail brands in history. It was sold to Golden Gate Capital Partners, a private equity firm with $15b in assets under management. And then, in May of 2010, the retailer went public.

Demographic vs. Psychographic | Part Two 

In 2016, Express made its first play for the direct-to-consumer era by acquiring a minority stake in HOMAGE, the Columbus Ohio retailer led by founder Ryan Vesler. It’s a genuine brand, one where the founder-product fit is as valuable as its product-market fit. The minority investment with vintage t-shirt company meant that Express bought a new audience of a key demographic: the college-aged millennial.

Homage President Jason Block said in an email that Express will consult with the company on an ongoing basis and the investment will allow Homage to expand both its digital and brick-and-mortar presence. [3]

Aside from investing in a growing company,  Express gained the rights to include a limited selection of HOMAGE products in store. The investment was intended to bolster foot traffic while, potentially, benefitting from the long-term flip – if and when the HOMAGE brand grew with the help of Express. It’s unclear whether or not this initiative was successful for either of the brands. The company is currently trading below the price it maintained during the period that Express began its partnership with HOMAGE. The publicly-traded retailer’s missteps over the past two years were due, in part, to a number of macroeconomic shifts.  The launch of UpWest represents a strategy shift of its own.

In Psychographics in Focus, I explain the difference between a demographic and psychographic. Consumer psychology involves the interest in lifestyle, behavior, and habit. It’s an encompassing measure that considers our idiosyncrasies, our temperament, and even our subtle personality traits. These are the variables that influence our behavior as consumers. Psychographic segmentation is the analysis of a consumer cohort’s lifestyle with the intent to create a detailed profile. [4]

Taking a community-building approach, UpWest plans to connect with new customers through experiential events, including a regional tour across the US that features the UpWest Cabin, a mobile pop-up exhibit featuring relaxation-focused experiences like yoga and meditation classes. Slated stops include Columbus, Chicago, Nashville, Denver and Austin.  [2]

From the typeface, to the story-telling, to the merchandising – the UpWest brand is designed to attract fans of the digitally-native industry. Rather than a specific demographic, Express pursued an interest (DTC) and is building a brand atop of that engaged audience.

DTC As A Psychographic

Web Smith en Twitter

DTC, 2012: a tech stack strategy. DTC, 2016: a logistics strategy. DTC, 2020: a brand strategy.

In a span of three days, I received multiple emails and texts from contacts close to the launch of UpWest. Kaleigh Moore, Forbes writer and 2PM collaborator had a story in queue by then. In the Lean Luxe Slack, it was a topic of conversation. Rather than building in-house with Express’ existing engineering group, UpWest contracted Shopify agency BVAccel to handle the design and development work. This was a nod to several of the most successful digitally native brands in the space to include Untuckit, Cubcoats, Chubbies, and Rebecca Minkoff. 

Comparison-Upwest

The site’s architecture communicates a desire to be mentioned in the DTC conversation, this includes UpWest’s partnership with Klaviyo and its new-age loyalty program. It would appear that UpWest chose to focus on the DTC psychographic for the sake of earned media and brand positioning. As far as the nuts and bolts are concerned, the site’s build communicates that the desired target demographic is millennial-aged women. On day zero, the brand has an explicit purpose: to provide comfort for body, mind, & spirit. The clothes, are priced similar in design and price to Marine Layer – its next closest competitor.

Identifying Waves: Importing Hygge to America

In the past year, this concept of Scandinavian coziness has made inroads with an international audience. [5]

Imagine a whiteboard in one of Express’ suburban Columbus boardrooms; the word “hygge” would have been at the center of it in big and bold lettering. You can picture the brand’s chief comfort officer (and Express’ SVP of Strategic Initiatives) standing in the corner of the room, jamming as Cody’s It’s Christmas plays on the room’s four Sonos speakers. The brand wants you to feel a feeling. Analysts agree. Emily Singer, founder of the DTC newsletter “Chips and Dip” had this to say:

There’s something very boring about it. Maybe that’s intentional. This line feels a little too on the nose: ‘Welcome to curated comfort. For those who are seeking peace and calm in a stressful world.’ Brands tap into emotional states, but it’s rarely laid out so explicitly.

It’s this perceived boredom that is viewed as an understated luxury in American culture. To the Danes, hygge is free of economic status. The culture’s entire focus is on practicality, movement, wellness, and mindfulness. It’s this underlying culture that Express hopes to import with the help of some obvious visual cues from well-known DTC retailers.

The UpWest typeface is nearly identical to the typeface of Outdoor Voices and Marine Layer’s. Ironically, both retailers have references to Scandinavian hygge throughout their brand messaging. But for UpWest, there’s no understatement. Every message is turned to maximum volume. Like the primary header of Express.com: UpWest’s primary menu is a throwback to “Limited Express”, a retailer for women-first and men-second. There are elements of luxury abound. Upwest’s blog features new-age terms like: nourish, mindfulness, tranquility, and sanctuary. The traveling pop-up is a “cabin.” These are all symbols of wealthier millennials with time and resources to spare. As is the concept of philanthropy and sustainability (though UpWest sells products that are made with synthetics).

It starts with our cozy apparel, home and wellness products. We want to surround you with calm and give you balance. But it’s not just the tangible things. It’s also about slowing down. Diving deeper. And giving back.

Not to be outdone, UpWest wants consumers to help them donate $1 million to the Mental Health Association. The Express-borne retailer plays the entire DTC hand of cards. This report began with a simple statement: middle-class retail is at an impasse. To the average consumer, this DTC play is akin to Structure being launched as Express Men. Like a sheep, the seventeen year old me bought from Express as soon as my adolescent wallet would allow. The mechanics are similar here. Express is attracting an existing audience (the DTC psychographic) and using it to invigorate a brand that is plateauing.

Conclusión

The UpWest bet is that the retailer can earn the business of the upwardly mobile DTC audience by engineering a product-market fit. One with heavy branding, ideal-alignment, and market messaging. This is one of the first upmarket attempts that we’ve seen from a specialty retailer. It’s one that deserves praise. Their management team engineered a brand with contemporary pricing and luxury messaging – void of pricing promotions (for now). They’ve acknowledged that the data shows a middle-class at an impasse. They have the supply chain, the logistics, the distribution, and a snapshot of a brand. But do the executives at Express truly understand what makes the top DTC brands work? That remains the question that could move the market.

Time will tell if Express can duplicate the brand architecting of their L Brands era – a time defined by face-less brands, clever signage, billboards, and foot traffic. My guess is that Express will find an audience that is more sophisticated and critical than the young adults of the 80’s, 90’s, and 2000’s. Messaging, distribution, and customer acquisition methods will evolve with this realization. And if that’s the case, their hygge may be tested for quite some time.

Investigación e informe de Web Smith | Sobre las 2PM

No. 337: Stick To Sports

For as long as there has been athletic competition, there has been a narrative that permeates from the field of play. Gladiators of Rome were commonly first-generation slaves, bought and sold at the whim of their owners – the sporting promoters of their day. Like today’s gladiator sports, cruelty was a part of the spectacle. And the minds of the time contrasted in their approval or disapproval of their era’s proudest spectacle. Great minds like Seneca disapproved of the competition. Marcus Aurelius once abolished a tax on gladiator-based taxes and commerce; he wanted nothing to do with the capitalism of it all. And still, he couldn’t resist hosting lavish games from time to time. The spectacle of cruelty was insatiable to the average man and the great one – alike.

As it was, as it will always be. Sports was never without its social commentary. Jesse Owens’ olympic showing wasn’t just impressive because of the speed of his feet; he beat the myth of German superiority with a foot race. Jackie Robinson wasn’t just a baseball player, he was remembered as a hero. That was the narrative that was formed about the man, even while his involvement lacked the popular sentiment that it is awarded today. Janet Guthrie was a media fixture, not just because of her precedent off of the track but because of her accomplishments on it. Before Danica Patrick, there was her. And with a little more support from sponsors and officials, she could have accomplished much more.

Since when has sports been about athletic accomplishment alone?

On a November evening after the Baltimore Ravens’ decisive victory against the undefeated New England Patriots, ESPN National NFL Writer Kevin Seifert made a statement with a simple tweet. He listed three quarterbacks, each of whom are considered candidates to win the league’s coveted most valuable player award. The quarterbacks that Seifert listed: Russell Wilson, Deshaun Watson, and Lamar Jackson are what veteran industry analysts would call: unconventional, mobile, dual-threat. However, they’re more than that. In each case, whether these quarterbacks pass or rush, they lead from the front. More than anything else, that’s their common thread.

Kevin Seifert on Twitter

If we’re doing the MVP now, I’m going: 1. Russell Wilson 2. Deshaun Watson 3. Lamar Jackson

Here is a selection of quarterbacks drafted before 2019’s MVP candidates: Ryan Tannehill, Brandon Weeden, Brock Osweiler, Mitchell Trubisky, Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, and Josh Rosen. To the casual observer, this thought may as well be morse code. So consider the following: the National Football League has never had three African-American quarterbacks in the front running for most valuable player. And certainly not in an era of the sport’s greatest quarterbacks, namely Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers. We’re still in a period of firsts in this 150 year old sport. Brigham Young University started their first African-American quarterback in the year 2019. The sentiments of the 1950’s still linger. So what Seifert was doing was making a statement without controversy. To the untrained eye, it was merely the fact of the matter. But to those who understand the historical significance, it was a dog whistle of sorts.

“If you ask me is there a false narrative out there, I will tell you ESPN being a political organization is false,” he said. “I will tell you I have been very, very clear with employees here that it is not our jobs to cover politics, purely.” [1]

But even with the mandate by new ESPN President Jimmy Pitaro, Seifert found a way to toe the proverbial line. Wilson, the 75th pick of the 2012 draft is now the highest paid quarterback in the league. Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky was drafted before Watson. And Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson was publicly and privately coaxed to convert to wide receiver by many in the media. He didn’t fit the image. His chorus of detractors included former Indianapolis Colts GM Bill Polian [2].

After this historic game, Bleacher Report took a muted approach as to avoid the conversation altogether. In the NFL, running backs don’t win MVP over transcendent quarterbacks. In the last 20 years, just four have won. Sixteen quarterbacks have been selected in that time. Just the same, here was their take:

And [Jackson] a clear MVP candidate. This game firmly planted him in that discussion, along with Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey, Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson.[3]

Meanwhile, at Deadspin, the two lead stories are written by a generic “Deadspin.” A sign that no one is behind the wheel. The reports were merely a collection of embedded tweets. There’s one on the Ravens surprise victory. The one where the quarterback (that should have played receiver) trounced the greatest of all time. As the two shook hands upon leaving the field of play – battered and bruised – Jackson uttered “You’re the GOAT.” As if Brady needed a reminder. The other Deadspin “story” featured the Cleveland Browns latest off-the-field issue.

The only report with any personality was written by Karu F. Daniels of The Root, another property of G/O Media. It was repurposed into Deadspin content. One can only wonder what Deadspin would have written about a unique moment in the sport’s vaunted history. But the site is currently a shell of its former self. The staff quit en masse after being told to by G/O Media management to “stick to sports.” A common refrain in today’s corporate media.

G/O Media is the product of Great Hill Partners’ acquisition of the former Gizmodo Media Group. The all-equity transaction was facilitated with Jim Spanfeller, best known for his leadership at Forbes.com. Perhaps, it’s his lack of experience in sports media that permitted such a fatal miscalculation.

The Irony of The “Stick to Sports” Mandate

Google Search interest for “Stick to Sports” peaks in September 2017

On its merits, the nature of the phrase is divisive. When ESPN’s Rachel Nichols spoke out in September of 2017, the peak of its interest, she raised questions around the hypocrisy of it. It was around that time when J.J. Watt was rightly praised for raising $20 million for hurricane relief while other athletes faced pushback for highlighting other extracurricular causes – most often around social justice issues. With the current state of American politics at a relative boiling point, the separation of societal politics and corporate entertainment have never been more difficult to parse. ESPN found ways around its “stick to sports” mandate by elevating intelligent and nuanced figures like Pablo Torre, Stephen A. Smith, Max Kellerman,and Bomani Jones. Deadspin wasn’t as forward thinking and they ultimately paid for that.

“Stick to sports” is, of course, a fault line in 2019’s culture wars. [4]

But as the state of our political machine continues to polarize Americans, the mandate becomes harder and harder to follow. Yet, it becomes more important to disobey. In fact, at some point, the mandate becomes bad business. This is especially true for digital media where Deadspin rival and The Chernin Group-owned Barstool Sports has thrived by using sports as a platform to enter adjacent conversations. And I am using the word “adjacent” liberally here. Several of the top stories on Barstool Sports currently include an Instagram influencer questioning his history syllabus, a feature on the “Watchmen” series, and a woman that tattooed her eyeballs.

The banner of Barstool’s homepage features a link to the media group’s famed Chicks podcast. And all of this is to say, it seems to be working for Barstool. This includes its cozy relationship with Fox News, including regular appearances by founder Dave Portnoy on Tucker Carlson. And this isn’t an argument against their approach. Rather, it was an acknowledgment that Barstool Sports has thus far succeeded by understanding the property’s psychographic. The Chernin Group seems to have avoided the stick to sports conversation with CEO Erika Nardini.

Ringer, Deadspin, B/R, Barstool and Psychographics

Consumer psychology involves the interest in lifestyle, behavior, and habit. It’s an encompassing measure that considers our idiosyncrasies, our temperament, and even our subtle personality traits. These are the variables that influence our behavior as consumers. Psychographic segmentation is the analysis of a consumer cohort’s lifestyle with the intent to create a detailed profile.

The Ringer is jovial and care-free. Bleacher Report is dead-pan with the occasionally dry humor. Barstool is edgy and offensive as a strategy. And so was Deadspin.

While largely focused on sports, Deadspin for years had delved into a broad range of topics in a voice that was sometimes rude, often funny and always conversational. On Tuesday, the site’s top editor, Barry Petchesky, was fired after refusing to go along with the order. The departures shocked fans of the site, which put a new spin on sports coverage for a generation of digital natives. But they were the result of a long buildup of resentment between the journalists and their new bosses, according to interviews with 13 current and former employees of Deadspin and G/O Media.[5]

Nov 4: Barstool’s Homepage

For Deadspin, the majority of their sensationalism involved topics that were completely unrelated to sports in substance, this report isn’t necessarily about the history of those articles. Bill Simmons’ The Ringer shares a similar narrative with Barstool. On the homepage, you’ll find stories about Mr. Robot, Jeopardy, AppleTV+, and The Watchmen. Bleacher Report contrasts the three. The publication leans heavily towards strict sports coverage, a methodology that works for them. But even B/R featured an epic story on Colin Kaepernick written by Rembert Browne. And most recently – a story about Jared Lorenzen, the former Kentucky quarterback who died prematurely. Which brings me to the point: where do you draw the line when your publication covers sports? Collegiate and professional sports represent a layer of American life, not the totality of it. Sports is merely a dimension, not the whole.

No Code and The Business Case FOr: Stick To Sports

OM on Twitter

Let me rewrite this tweet from Jason. 1/ Deadspin writers are immensely talented and have a huge following. They have a lot of goodwill at present and as a result they should Marshall their collective resources and start a new publication. Let’s call it SpunOut. https://t.co/161I1HkInj

The editors and writers who resigned from Deadspin had a basis for their frustration. Sticking to sports is a nearly impossible proposition in today’s media. Given how rare it is to see a media company stick to their original charter, it’s understandable that Deadspin’s former employees saw the charge for what it really was: a euphemism for staying away from covering athletes who’ve immersed themselves in left-leaning causes.

But we’re in an ever-expansive era of digital media. Companies are rewarded for reaching. Complex Media is developing television shows and consulting third parties on commerce and audience development. Barstool Sports has a podcast starring two employees who discuss their friendship and sex lives, and Bleacher Report successfully collaborated on soccer kits with top hip hop artists.

Whatever happens moving forward, the Deadspin that was is no longer. It was one machine of a blog with nearly 30 million monthly visits and a penchant for engaging and re-engaging their loyal readers, many who’d visit the site multiple times per day. But it begs the question, if Deadspin was still Deadspin, what might they have written of Kevin Seifert’s idea? How would it have covered a tweet that should have been more than inconsequential. It’s doubtful that Deadspin may have told the story in the same ways that Barstool, Bleacher Report, ESPN, and The Ringer relayed theirs. To those platforms, the MVP race was not a story at all. But take it from NFL veteran and commentator Cris Collinsworth. As the Ravens led the Patriots, with the crowd in disbelief, Collinsworth quipped:

We’re going to be able to point to quarterbacks in the NFL that got a chance because of this night.

But in 2019, for many digital publishers, that’s too loaded of a statement. But many understood what it meant. And that understanding is part of the story too. The market has a need and the opportunity rests on the journalists who decide to forge their own paths. It’s only right that Deadspin alumni launches a Substack with the call sign of their mandate: Stick to Sports. Used ironically,  of course, as one last jab at the man they called an herb. The publication would almost instantly lead the Substack board.

With that model, Deadspin’s former writers and editors would have the freedom to do it the right way. Anyone who’s ever played the game knows that sports doesn’t end when you step off of the field of play. A sport is America’s pastime, it’s the most watched television event, it’s the most expensive event ticket, it’s the basis of a nation’s network of country and athletic clubs. Across America, hotels are built solely to support a thriving youth sports cultures of areas that would otherwise be barren without its expensive field complexes. Young people wear jerseys and the shoes of sporting legends. And adults bet and cry and yell and travel to watch their teams. It’s the irrationality of it all that reminds us that sticking to sports is an impossible task. And media should reflect that impossibility. Seifert knew the significance of his tweet, America should have known it too.

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