What’s wrong with Cash?

WHAT IS WRONG WITH CASH?

Apple doesn’t want your cash any more. Sounds rather odd to me, since I was under the impression that the objective of business was to sell a product or service in exchange for money. But the Jobs squad have decided I can’t take bonafide American folding money and buy one of their iPhones with it. They only want my plastic.

What if I don’t WANT to use my debit or credit card? What if I want to plunk down Washingtons and Lincolns and Hamiltons and Franklins instead? And would the Apple store folks, who know me from my recent repair episode, really look me in the eye and watch my $1,000+ walk out the door? Not taking cash seems downright un-American.

I understand Apple’s overall goal – making sure that black market sellers don’t hog all the iPhones. It’s an admirable undertaking. The process Apple came up with to ensure “one for all” was to limit each sale to only two iPhones and to demand a debit/credit card for the transaction. Exactly the kind of process a table full of business people might come up with.

But let’s look at the big picture. What are they doing by this “2 with Plastic” decree? Has Apple hired iPhone police to go through all the transactions in hopes of enforcing their rules?

Come on, people. Black market wholesalers don’t play by no stinkin’ rules. If they want to purchase 50 iPhones, they’ll just manufacture fake cards and REALLY rip off the company.

This isn’t the first time I’ve been denied a cash transaction at a big company. A few years back, on my way home from the gym, I dropped by a FedEx office in Sarasota, FL armed with the outgoing letter and a $20 bill. But the fine folks at FedEx wouldn’t take the cash. My negotiating skills failed, as did my logic lecture and I left with the $20 and the letter, confused and feeling like I had survived surrealism brought to life.

Did anybody get the email about cash being passé? I must have been counting my money.

The First Casualty

A moment of silence, please, for the first casualty of the Fall 07 Network TV class. No longer will viewers be able to watch (on network TV) the CW’s ONLINE NATION. The user-generated content show just didn’t have enough heat behind it. Users weren’t watching, they were out generating, I guess. There wasn’t any sales incentive to keep the show on, so the fame of ONLINE NATION will forever be as the “first cancelled” of this years crop of shows.

I’m not a big believer in user-generated video. It is my sincere belief that there just aren’t that many Spielbergs out there. Not every high school can boast a Barry Sonnenfeld or a Tim Burton. Little Alfred Hitchcocks are not sitting on their Mac’s churning out the next “North by Northwest” via their Final Cut Pro. Before you get your knickers in a twist, I admit I know there are talented young and old video producers around, and it’s wonderful to see their work get a broader audience. But come on…why are professional producers relying on user generated video submissions, which is just another way to say amateur efforts? Sure, it costs next to nothing, if nothing at all. Chalk one up for the producers’ bottom lines.

I find most user-generated video akin to sitting and watching my Aunt Margaret’s video of her vacation to Greece. Or those second grade movies about a subject that nobody has any memory of whatsoever.

I see TV’s focus on user generated video to reach its zenith in AMERICA’S FUNNIEST HOME VIDEOS. And even then, judicious editing, mixing and producing by professionals are needed. Looking into my crystal ball, I predict user generated video shows to be the CB radio of our time.  Don’t remember CB radio? My point exactly.

The Elusive Creative Writer Producer

So you can’t find a good writer producer? This is the lament of Creative Services departments coast to coast. No matter what size market, no matter what market position the station, no matter the owner, no matter anything…the difficulty in finding a talented promotion writer producer seems tantamount to finding Osama Bin Laden. Just not happening.

Why could this be? More importantly, what can you do about it? Here are some thoughts that might help.

1. Show Me the Money
The only way a company can truly show it values the services of an employee is with compensation. Is the pay rate you offer in line with other stations in your market? In line with other production entities as well? Googling salary ranges is right up there on ‘things to do’ when someone is thinking of applying for any job, so I’m positive it’s what your producer candidate does. Make sure you aren’t on the short side of the salary range.

What if you are? Think about these options:

•  MANAGE UP   Explain to the GM, HR head and the corporate folks that your particular situation will require a higher compensation rate. You CSD’s are masters of persuasion, so take those skills and put them to work for yourself. It’s hard to argue with hard figures, so list where you are and where everybody else is.

• NEGOTIATE  If that wasn’t successful and you don’t cash to play with in the negotiation, time to get creative again. Is flex time possible? C|net reported that Salary.com conducted a survey in ’06, asking workers if they would rather have a $5,000 raise or the equivalent in time off. One-third chose the time over the money. My guess is that as time gets crunched even more, what with longer commutes plaguing even small cities, the time option will get chosen more often. Can you offer working from home while writing? Cell phones…transportation…weekly Starbucks cards?

What else can you do to lure that fab candidate your way?

GRAB A MAGNIFYING GLASS
Take a good hard look at the job description of the slot you want filled. Is it going to be one that burns someone out because there’s more demanded than can be delivered on a consistent basis? I heard from someone recently that told me they were looking for a producer who could handle three stations and didn’t mind overtime. Other than breaking a federal employment law (check out the expectation of overtime and how it applies to you), what sane person would jump at this?

GET OVER YOURSELF
The patina of TV is over, everybody. The medium isn’t the place where the creative types you seek see a future. You are going to stop thinking that just because you have a TV job, the best and brightest will fight over it. Once you jettison that expectation, you’ll not only feel better, you’ll be able to approach the creative opening you have with a more realistic anticipation.

GROW YOUR OWN
With the addition of the editing skill to the writer producer mix; you might want to see who is available in your own station. Taking someone under your wing, teaching them the ropes, how to write, why they do what they need to do…you might find a real gem. This has happened to me and it’s a rush to watch the progress of this creative I helped hatch. He’s now in market #5, thanks for asking. And yes, they eventually will leave and you’ll be back in the same spot.

Read an excellent article about how to keep talent once you find them. Click here, thanks to the Wall Street Journal.

Good luck, and if you need help finding that elusive creative candidate, just give me a buzz.