Is the tough economy compromising sound branding business decisions?

If they are not, I’m missing a piece of this story. Yesterday in Tampa, my hometown, Live Nation announced that they were renaming the Ford Amphitheater the 1-800-ASK-GARY. Which is a lawyer referral firm.

Shocking, an embarrassment and an ugly, ugly mole on Tampa’s face.

This is called a triple-edged brand, great for Gary, Great for Amphitheater’s bank account, a joke for Tampa.

Dear Mr. Economy, please get better soon, so more of this, take the money, forget the bigger picture does not happen again at least in Tampa.

By Karen Post|2015-10-07T10:02:56-04:00June 11th, 2010|Branding|

About the Author: Karen Post

Karen Post is an entrepreneur, international branding authority, and author. Her books include: Brand Turnaround: How Brands Gone Bad Returned to Glory and the 7 Game Changers that Made the Difference (McGraw-Hill); and Brain Tattoos: Creating Unique Brands That Stick in Your Customers' Minds (AMACOM).

3 Comments

Lan Meany June 14, 2010 at 5:17 pm

Thats good stuff you’ve written up on this blog. Had been hunting for this everywhere. Nice work
Susan Murphy June 22, 2010 at 4:24 pm

Talk about a total disconnect! A perfect example of Theatre of the Absurd. Sorry to hear this.
Melissa June 26, 2010 at 4:43 am

I have to agree. It’s a bit like a professional business woman becoming a prostitute during tough times to make ends meet. Sure there is a chance for great money but’s degrading, and I have to believe that there are far better decisions they could have made than changing the Ford Amphitheater to 1-800-Ask-Gary. I live in Orlando, I see those billboards everywhere – see the commercials on TV (for 1-800-Ask-Gary), and it just seems trashy … maybe I am just one of those snooty designers … But the Ford Amphitheater is also huge in the rock crowd in Central Florida, and 1-800-Ask-Gary Amphitheater just will come across as a joke, in my opinion…

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