Client Spotlight: Grace Lee

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By Nikki Stephens
Strategy Assistant

Client Spotlight: Grace Lee
Age: 29
Company: Atlanta G Spots

B Culture Media: Where does your love of food stem?
Grace Lee: I’ve always loved food from even a very young age. My mother used to tell me that I would eat everything with so much excitement (and to be honest I still do!). Food has always been celebrated in my family and culture growing up so I always associate it with good times shared with loved ones.

BCM: When and how did you come up with the idea for Atlanta G Spots?
GL: I noticed that most of my money was spent on eating out. All of my friends would ask me where to eat, because they knew I had been almost every where. One night when I couldn’t sleep – in a normal fit of insomnia – I stayed up and made a spread sheet of every place I had eaten in Atlanta. The sun came up and I had more than 500 entries. That is when I started to think of building a site where I could share my recommendations with everyone.

BCM: What services does Atlanta G Spots offer?
GL: Restaurant reviews and recommendations, discounts on meals and Hotspot Happenings. Hotspot Happenings are happy hours where customers can try new food for free and enjoy drink specials while mingling with other young professionals.

BCM: How did you get involved in competitive eating?
GL: I started doing competitive eating when I was getting ready to launch my website AtlantaGSpots.com so I could get buzz and promote Atlanta G Spots. I kept winning competitions and it snowballed into this huge sensation. The Bert show sponsored me to go to  New York to compete in Nathan’s Hotdog Contest. It really got a lot of attention and the “weinergate” scandal travelled around the world. Now, I’m mainly doing guest spots and judging food competitions, but not competing in them.

BCM: What are your career goals for the next few years?
GL: I want to have a TV show focused on food, travel and culture. I think there is a lot of interest with the new foodie culture on all the networks: think Food Network, TLC, Bravo. I would also love to become a global ambassador with the sponsors I’m working with. I ultimately want to expand Atlanta G Spots to other cities: Miami, New York, Chicago and more.

BCM: What do you hope B Culture can do for your brand?
GL: I hope B Culture can take us to the next level and reach a bigger audience. I believe branding is very important, especially as I continue to receive more recognition from competitive eating. Social media is critical in the industry I’m in and brand awareness is so important, so I’m hoping the experts at B Culture will maximize our opportunities. I trust that B Culture will manage my brand well and strategize our growth in the right direction.

 

Super Speed

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By Nikki Stephens
Strategy Assistant

Nivea’s “Re-civilize Yourself” campaign endured a serious backlash from social media users accusing the brand of racism in one of its ads.  The ad in question features an African American man tossing out a mask of himself with an afro-style cut and a full beard.  The tag line: “Look like you give a damn. Re-civilize yourself.” It was pulled from print almost immediately due to outraged Facebookers, Tweeters and bloggers who blew up their social networks with their disapproval.

This reaction to the ad got me thinking about the speed that the Internet has in controlling marketing moves. Because the company was able to get immediate feedback, it was able to take the necessary actions to rectify the situation. This is the norm in today’s digital world and brands need to realize everything now moves at hyper speed.

In the past, an advertisement would run in print and only those viewers with a ridiculously strong opinion – either positive or negative – would take the time to write a letter to the company via snail mail. Comments on the campaign would trickle in to the company over the course of several days, weeks or even months depending on when a consumer got around to sending it out. Only if enough people voiced their censure, would any real action be taken to remove the offense from future printing.

Fast forward to 2011 where content can be added or removed in a matter of seconds. Companies have the ability to take bigger risks and make a larger splash in today’s world, because if something gives off the wrong vibe, it is easily deletable.  The problem or offense can be swiped clean before the full target population ever sees it.