Awards season is an important time for the bottom line of local media outlets and this year there are quite a few players competing to rank the best in Kansas City.
A quick overview . . .
435 Mag is now the king of the "best of" game in Kansas City
The Pitch has SEVERELY SCALED DOWN THEIR BEST OF ISSUE and more than a few local musicians have made a big deal of rejecting their nominations via social media.
Hint: Your favorite local piano man told his fans not to bother signing him up for a prize.
Meanwhile . . .
Feast Mag is now the king of Kansas City foodie "Best Of" awards.
A peek behind the curtain for those few lucky souls who don't know . . . The "best of" content is mostly "advertorial" and one of the longest running pay-for-play "arrangements" in local print media history. Here's how it usually works: Small biz advertises throughout the year or buys a big ad celebrating their "win" and then they're rewarded with a lovingly crafted glowing review . . . The favor trading isn't such a big deal given that most people enjoy the bubble-gum coverage and only the dweebs who care about the "integrity of local journalism" (LULZ!!!) are slightly offended or look at the practice as sordid and unethical . . . The reality is that it's a nice moneymaker and nobody (usually) gets hurt.
However . . .
GIVEN SO MANY REVIEWS AND INTERNETS "BEST OF" OPTIONS . . . KANSAS CITY SMALL BIZ NO LONGER COVET THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM PUBLICATIONS WITH LESS PERCEIVED INFLUENCE THAN CONSTANTLY UPDATED SOCIAL MEDIA REVIEWS!!!
Put simply . . . The Internets low key killed another aspect of Kansas City media tradition and, more importantly, revenue.
Small biz is now more concerned with Google reviews, Yelp, social media chatter than the musings of 3rd-teir J-school grads. Trustworthy Reviews from 500 Assh*les have proven a stronger force than the witticisms and back story published by people who should probably consider new careers as legal secretaries.
Here's insider word from one of the poor souls attempting to pitch these deals to KCMO biz . . .
"Nobody's buying. A lot of our longtime advertisers aren't interested in paying for a nicely framed award and nobody wants the full page write-up any more . . . Probably because the new owners jacked up the cost to a sky high price that rivals that of a used car. But it's ridiculous that the drop off was so quick. Last year this was a lot easier . . . Not too long ago, people used to try to game the voting system, which was always arbitrary, but now there's little interest overall. Don't get me wrong, we'll still fill our space and it's our most popular issue of the year but this time around I think the secret is out: People aren't reading our magazine for a 'definitive' guide to anything, they're getting told what to do by their stupid mobile devices."
And so, while we admire the hustle of the folks pitching this award from a bygone era . . . We offer the debate to our blog community . . .
DO YOU TRUST NEWSIES OR "THE WISDOM OF CROWDS" TO DETERMINE THE BEST OF KANSAS CITY???
You decide . . .
The online reviews are just more fun.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever checked out the response from Anton's to some of the nasty comments? They roast right back and it's fun to watch people get really mad.
Print guides just can't compete with that, I don't care how glossy the magazines are.
It wasn't a secret really, the weekly mags have been having a tough time for years. But I guess this time around it's more obvious.
I think the online reviews are easily faked and agree that answering them quickly and professionally makes for captivating content and gives the reader more confidence in the business. Between doing that kind of PR and then managing the core business, I can understand why these guys don't have the time to get sold on some paper prize.
DeleteExcuse me, it's not called the "wisdom" of crowds. It's mob mentality plain and simple. It dictates our culture and politics. Just look at the idiots who STILL support the President despite all of the charges that are facing him.
DeleteAmazon Hires Twitter Trolls To Tweet Nice Things About Its Warehouses
ReplyDelete“After Flamboyant Shoes Guy called out the phenomenon, I found 15 accounts (please don’t abuse them — they get enough of that already). All with “Amazon smiles” as their backgrounds and several with animals as profile pictures. All have the same biostructure: “(Job titles) @(warehouse shorthand location). (Duration) Amazonian. (2- or 3-item list of things they like.)” All have “FC Ambassador” in their name. All have links to an Amazon warehouse tour service,” said TechCrunch.
LOL
^^^^^^^^ I would still trust that guy more than The Pitch.
ReplyDeleteInternet surfing chairs with built in automatic flushing toilets are the future.
ReplyDeleteIs 9mm still the Best of KC caliber of choice ?
ReplyDelete^^^^^^^ You mean you don't have yours already. Dood. Learn how to search amazon properly. It's the only way to really get into your gaming grove.
ReplyDeleteJoin my team on Twitch: Kc chuckle buddies.
Wisdom of the crowds??????????? The so called leaders of KC were ELECTED !!!!
ReplyDeleteThe one percent earnings tax (slush fund) was EXTENDED 20 F______ YEARS !!!!
Nuff said-
Does anybody still look for ratings on Yelp?
ReplyDeleteEveryone knows that restaurant owners order their employees to give them high ratings on that platform.
The only thing you can be certain of about a "Five Star" Yelp Review is that is was posted by the Joint's dishwasher.
I think the pay for play scam got worse in the lead up to the digital takeover, it was obvious that magazines like the pitch were using it as leverage over a whole community of businesses. So it's almost like justice that all of these publications are having trouble selling their wares when they once ruled like tyrants when businesses didn't have other options.
ReplyDeleteFunny stuff TKC.
ReplyDeleteStill, I like picking up "Feast" and looking thru it.
I am probably the last guy alive in the Mid West who still gets "Vanity Fair" in the mail. James Wolcott is the only guy worth reading (I disagree with everything he supports, but love to read the guy's stuff.) now that Hitchens is dead.
The advertising is wonderful in "Vanity Fair". Almost every ad is worth looking at for detail, photography...., it's just pretty cool.
The writers are completely fuckin insane and they hate the fuck out of people like me, but, I love the magazine.
"Feast" is a really cool look at local stuff that you can pick up and check out while you ARE out.
JMO
no
ReplyDeleteLies I tell you, it's all lies to get you to go where you might not go.
ReplyDelete^^^^^^^^ Stupid.
ReplyDeleteThere must be people out there who read the "best of" lists and try out the places only to be disappointed by the experience. They must feel like "what's wrong with me" if I don't like a Triple-Star rated place. I know that those ratings are sometimes flawed, and I only judge a place based on MY experience.
ReplyDeleteThat said, the lists are a waste of paper.
5:32
ReplyDelete+100000