There are many churches, but few cathedrals
9 Inch Axiom – Traditions / Symbols
‘The ability to create either traditions or symbols that make a sensory connection with your target audience is key to creating a strong brand”
Every sport has its cathedral. Golf has Augusta National . . . Tennis has the All England Lawn & Tennis Club . . . Horse Racing has Churchill Downs . . . and Baseball has Wrigley Field.
If you’ve had a chance to be a patron at the Masters, queue at Wimbledon, sing ‘Take me out to a ball game’ at a Cubs game or sip a mint julep at the Kentucky Derby, then you’d probably agree that each of these venues invoke tradition, heritage and a certain religous feel.
There are many churches, but few cathedrals . . .
What are cathedrals? According to Wikipedia the term cathedral was originally the adjective in the phrase “cathedral church”, from the Latin ecclesia cathedralis. Cathedral is latin for ‘seat’, the place set aside in the prominent church of the diocese and is therefore a major symbol of authority.
Issue: What can we learn from Augusta National, the All England Lawn and Tennis Club, Churchill Downs and Wrigley Field when building a brand? How can you make your brand prominent and a major symbol of authority like a cathedral?
Possibly the answer lies in the appeal of religion. A new book by Martin Lindstrom called, Buy-ology asserts that many of today’s top brands tap into similar areas of the brain that religion does (he scanned some 2,000 brains for his study).
Here are my thoughts on some of the unique sensory characteristics from our cathedrals of sport:
Touch (Rituals) – catching home run balls on Waveland Avenue (and throwing them back), women wearing large fancy hats, sleeping overnight in the ‘queue’ for tickets (my Dad did this once in SW19) and hand operated scoreboards around the course. What types of unique rituals are you encouraging with your product or service?
Sight (Colors + Symbols) – Green Ivy covered brick walls, a blanket of 554 roses, the Azaleas, the Hogan bridge, the Royal Box, all white tennis clothes and the Spires. What unique colors or symbols are you trying to own in the mind of your consumer?
Taste (Traditional fare) – Strawberries and cream (Pimm’s and a Dutchee are Wimby fav’s), pimento and cheese sandwiches (they are actually good and ridiculously cheap at $1.50 a piece), mint juleps, wrigley pigs (pulled pork sandwich). What is your signature feature, service or dish that you can uniquely call your own?
Sounds – a bugler playing ‘Call to the Post’, the CBS Masters jingle (by Yanni), everyone joining in for ‘Take me out to the ball game’ and Bud Collins + his ‘nicknames’ (ie. Fingers Fortesque). What sound do you own?
Today’s Lagniappe - Here is a good video from bNet on the book Buyology. A couple of interesting things you’ll learn:
1. The ‘real’ effect of cigarette warning labels.
2. The origin of putting a lime in a bottle of Corona.
3. The top 10 things that branding can learn from religion.
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The goal of marketing is to capture the mind and ultimately conquer the heart of your target audience.
The aim of 9 INCH MARKETING is to examine that journey. We'll explore 'how to' bridge the gap between traditional and social media by taking a sensory approach to integrated marketing.
No doubt that these sports ‘cathedrals’ are total sensory experiences and their traditions, rituals and lore support a rich brand experience. So, can these new places such as Citi Field or Yankee Stadium 3.0 ever become cathedrals?
Good question David. I would think Yankee Stadium will be bringing the same symbols and traditions across the street. Let’s hope aura and destiny (not dancers as Curt Schilling once eloquently said) will also be making the trip. I’m interested to see how $1.3 billion was spent on this cathedral.
In my mind I hope the Mets take an opportunity to build Citi Field and its traditions from the ground up. Let’s leave the ghosts of two seasons past behind in the rubble of Shea.