Brands in Drought

KSLA is playing with fire.  A new promo for the CBS station's weather department is trying to take a light hearted approach to the drought that has gripped their viewing area in Northwest Louisiana, Southwest Arkansas and Northeast Texas.  Their brand is "We Track Storms," but there haven't been any storms in weeks and only a handful since June.  So a new spot KSLA has produced and placed into heavy rotation is trying to have a little fun.

In the late 1990s, just one market west of KSLA, the NBC station, KETK decided to have a little fun with the weather as well.  They were in the middle of a heat wave.  Day after day, it was sunny and 100 degrees.  The forecast was so routine, the station decided the Chief Meteorologist could "phone it in."  So, in a light hearted manner, they had their Chief do the 5, 6, and 10 PM weathercasts from his couch in his living room.  The next day, a person in their viewing area died from heat stroke.  KETK's competition pounced.  KLTV, the ABC station ran a full page ad in the paper saying the heat wave was a life and death situation and KETK wasn't taking the threat seriously.  KLTV was, and therefore KLTV was the only weather department you should trust.  KLTV has dominated most of the ratings wars in the two decades since.

Here's the script for KSLA's latest weather promo...

(Shots of the meteorologists walking through dust, putting on sunglasses and staring longingly at the sky.  Western music out of High Noon plays in the background.)  A very dramatic voice slowly says, "Wet weather.  It’s coming.  Someday.  We’ll be ready.  We Track Storms."

OK, so it's a little cheesy, but what's wrong with that?  They're just showing they are human beings too and know how to have fun!  

There are two big problems with this spot.  The first is it undermines the credibility of their weather team.  The second problem is they are taking a huge risk with their brand image for very little payoff.  

A modern meteorologist does not go outside to look at the skies for a sign of rain over the next seven days.  You check the skies to see if your seven day forecast was right or wrong.  Anyone at home can simply look up and see sunshine.  The viewer expects the experts to have better tools than eyesight alone.  The meteorologist shouldn't be looking for a stray cloud, but rather a major shift in the overall weather pattern.  That will require a big change in the jet stream and you're not going to spot that with the naked eye.  Obviously, the meteorologists at KSLA are doing more than just playing, "Spot the Cloud," but the promo belittles their professional skills rather than highlighting them.

The promo is also belittling the brand, "We Track Storms."  This is an identity that has been carefully crafted for more than a decade and it's one that has worked when done well.  KSLA has been the go to station during severe weather for many years now, and that has helped buoy the station's ratings.  This promo makes fun of that.  Worse, it does it in a way that also belittles the severity of the current drought and the impact it's having on KSLA's audience.

KSLA's recent promo is taking a light hearted approach to a weather situation that isn't light hearted.  All it will take is for one major grass fire, one house fire, one death and KSLA's brand of We Track Storms will become a joke in the minds of KSLA's viewers.  They are already at risk because on KSLA's own webpage, they are running a story of a major grassfire in one parish in their viewing area and a house fire in another county in their viewing area.  This is an opening for the competition.  It is an unforced error.

The biggest irony to me in all of this is that KSLA should have known better.  You see, KLTV, the station that benefitted from KETK's joking approach to the weather, is KSLA's sister station.  They are owned by the same people - Raycom.  Indeed, the management of KLTV in the 1990s is now in corporate management over KSLA.  Institutional memory should have kicked in and prevented this mistake.

Full disclosure: I know a lot about KSLA's weather promos because I used to be their Chief Meteorologist.  For 7 years, they branded me "StormTracker Steve."  I personally lived the brand for the better part of a decade.  I know what the brand truly means and how to effectively communicate that mission to the audience.  For the 8 years prior to that, I worked at KLTV in East Texas reporting and doing the weather.  My criticism of this latest spot isn't as a disgruntled former employee lashing out on the internet.  Raycom and KSLA were very good for my family for many years.  I'm writing this article because I believe strongly in learning from the mistakes of others and I hope this message can help you and your business.

Rather than just pointing out where things are wrong, I'd like to offer more constructive criticism. Here's the spot I would have developed if I had been in charge of protecting and promoting KSLA's weather brand.

(Shots of the Chief Meteorologist along the bank of the Red River)  "Just a few months ago, the Red was out of its banks.  Homes were destroyed.  Family memories were washed away."
(Shots of a meteorologist inspecting dry ground)  "When the rain stopped, it stopped.  Now flood has turned to drought.
(Meteorologist on a farm) "That has had devastating effects on crops and livestock.  Burn bans are in place across the ArkLaTex.
(Weather Team back in the studio) "We can't control the weather.  But, we can give you the information you need to protect your family from the ravages of nature - whether it's too much or too little.  That's why We Track Storms."

A spot like this supports the professionalism of the weather department.  It demonstrates empathy and community with the audience.  It makes the brand, "We Track Storms" mean more than just drawing a little cone on a radar screen.  It's bigger than that.  It's more important than that.

If your messaging doesn't match your branding, then you need someone else doing your marketing.  Let us know how we can help craft, build, support and protect your brand.