Past Shows
Gobble Gobble
10.14.20 | Over 70% of Americans plan to celebrate Thanksgiving differently this year. Smaller gatherings mean smaller turkeys, but the turkey industry was not prepared to pivot. As John noted, it means more leftovers, which is not a bad thing if you are preparing with a larger than needed bird. Lawrence Herkimer, the Grandfather of Cheerleading is our Business Birthday. Finally, we have a special guest, Marge Margulies, joining us from her pottery studio in Northern California. So many businesses have had to adjust in 2020 from in-person selling to e-commerce. As a working artist, Marge shares with us the how and why of changing with the times.
TFG Unbuttoned: The next big thing in beverages
10.13.20 | A new seltzer infused with cannabis derived THC is predicted to be the next multi-billion-dollar beverage. Dollar General expands with a new group of stores where everything is under $5 called Popshelf and PornHub has introduced a new line of “personal pleasure toys” with a campaign called, “Not My Job.” Apparently, people have been using household items in a way not intended and PornHub wants you to stop it.
Poor Donald
10.07.20 | Walter Keane is our Business Birthday this week. Keane made millions selling his wife Margaret’s big-eyed children paintings as his own. Caught My Eye celebrates Crazy Eddie pitchman Jerry Carroll. Shop Talk explores two business stories involving Schwinn’s 125th Anniversary, and Pride Media’s owner donates yet again to anti-LGBTQ politicians.
TFG Unbuttoned: Science wins
10.06.20 | Not a lot of sympathy for the anti-maskers from us. Wear your mask, it helps. What do you think of the Netflix ‘dun dun’ sound? We explore some aural brand tones. Then, foul-mouthed parrots at a UK zoo are placed away from the general public in the hope of calming their language. Finally, two strangers wanted to travel and rather than going alone, they went together after answering an ad on Facebook. Not sure we would do it, but in this case, it seemed to have turned out well.
Well-known brands get a facelift
09.30.20 | Shop Talk looks at Uncle Ben’s and Cream of Wheat as they eliminate iconography perceived to be racial stereotypes. The Village People songwriter of YMCA will sue you if you say it is a gay song and John digs up an old 70s show featuring chimps—Lancelot Link, Secret Chimp. John T. Nash, niche advertising pioneer, is our #BusinessBirthday.
TFG Unbuttoned: Boystown Chicago reboot
09.29.20 | Chicago’s famed “Boystown” will now be known as Northalsted. In a recent survey, 20% of the respondents said the male gendered gayborhood nickname did not make them feel welcome. But first, a secret “man cave” is discovered under New York City’s Grand Central Station complete with fridge, microwave, bed, and streaming TV! Then, a New England man dies from eating too much black licorice.
DC Heats Up as Fall Cools
09.23.20 | DC is heating up with the death of RBG. Check out our Tuesday broadcast of #TFGUnbuttoned to hear our POV. Find all of our media at focusgroupradio.com. Flights to nowhere, and sometimes a heart is just a heart Caught Our Eye this week. Sue Ling Gin, the founder of airline caterer The Flying Food Group, is our Business Birthday this week. Shop Talk highlights a perfectly executed marketing campaign from Patagonia which has already garnered loyalty from the consumer.
TFG Unbuttoned: RIP RBG
09.22.20 | A surprising 45% of gay men support Trump for President in 2020 according to a recent poll done by Hornet. Wow. Then, Canadian LGBTQ people experience the same type of discrimination and assault as their counterparts in the USA—despite the notion that Canada is further ahead of us when it comes to LGBTQ rights. Finally, a woman in New Hampshire was told she could not vote if she wore an anti-Trump t-shirt in the polling place. So, she took it off, had no bra on, and went topless to vote!
Get a better night’s sleep
09.16.20 | Shop Talk looks at a recent study that suggest doing this one thing at night will help you sleep better and has other surprising benefits. But first, an upstate NY Star Trek exhibit and stealing sand Caught Our Eye. Jacob Schick, the pioneer of the electric razor, is our #BusinessBirthday.
TFG Unbuttoned: No Peeps for you!
09.15.20 | For the first time since 1958, Peeps will not be on the shelves this Halloween. The company also will forego Christmas and Valentine’s Day as it prepares for Easter 2021—something seems off about this to us. But first, most people have depleted their emergency funds during the pandemic and a Finnish Burger King franchise celebrates Pride by releasing a Love Conquers All Campaign that features the Burger King mascot kissing Ronald McDonald. Funny? Creepy?
