Bob Baker's The Buzz Factor

August 16 marks the 29th anniversary of the passing of the Swivel-hipped King. I read one of today's news stories on the subject. It reminded me that when Elvis Presley made his first appearance on the The Ed Sullivan Show in 1956, more than 60 million viewers tuned in. Back then, that was 80% of all U.S. TV owners. Amazing.

It's a great lesson on how much things have evolved over the last 50 years. Not only has the population grown, but the entertainment choices people now have are staggering. This growth and information overload is not necessarily a bad thing. It just means that with a little filtering and searching, anyone can find the exact type of audio, visual or verbal stimulation that's right for them.

It also means that widespread shared media experiences are mostly a thing of the past. Sure, 25 million people may tune in to watch American Idol, but that's only about 14% of U.S. households -- a huge percentage by today's standards. Most TV programs are happy with decent single-digit numbers.

Whether you run a cable network, a book publishing company or an indie band, your focus should be on attracted a small but loyal sliver of the population. It's great to have ambitious, superstar goals, but if you insist on being a household name, you may miss the truly golden opportunities that await you in the musical niches.

Serve your core audience well and your exposure will multiply in good time!

Why Be That Guy?

Being That Guy is advantageous to your business in several ways.

First, there’s the connection. Customers don’t buy products, they buy people they like and relate to FIRST. Then -- and only then -- do they buy products.

Next is trust. You see, customers no longer trust big companies due to the proliferation of corporate scandals and corruption. (Thanks Enron!) They want a face. A person. An individual they can confide in. So when it comes down to business, everyone trusts That Guy. Because he's a human, not a company.

Then there's credibility, an aura of expertise which is perceived by your customers based on your actions. Not your intentions, your actions. Because people only give you credit for what they see you do consistently.

That Guy also projects authenticity. This is a characteristic present in anyone who is That Guy because he keeps it real. He maintains congruency between what he believes, what he says, and what he does.

This is essential to business success not only because your customers are smarter than ever before, but also because they have better bullshit meters than ever before.

Lastly, there's confidence, the one emotion you want flowing through the mind and heart of every customer you serve. Because when you're That Guy, customers will be confident you're the best. Confident that you will serve them better than anyone. Confident that you're so incredibly unique, knowledgeable and valuable, that you become somebody who reminds them of nobody else.

And in the end, customers want to work with someone who is authentic, real and has passion for what he or she does.

In other words, people want to work with That Guy, not Some Guy.

Now that people can listen to nearly anything, the third of these is the really important one. It reflects a metric that's only become available with digital distribution. What's on your iPod? What do people replay? What are they sharing? These are the metrics that really matter.

Now, perhaps for the first time in history, we can measure the real shape of demand, and thus the real shape of music culture. And it turns out that it's not what we thought it was in the Top 40 era.