Welcome to Compositions, James DeKoven's column about brand communications. This time around:

- American loves bagels
- Album of the month

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Americans loves bagels
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Americans are good at transforming time-honored niche products into mainstream staples. Consider the bagel. Until about 20 years ago, bagels were only familiar to those fortunate enough to live in communities with large Jewish populations. These days you can find a bagel shop in every trendy neighborhood and strip mall.

Nothing about bagels changed. People didn’t suddenly get hit by lightening bolts of cream cheese and realize, “Wow, these are delicious – where have bagels been all of my life?”

Our collective bagel consciousness manifested because they were rebranded for mass consumption. Brightly lit retail spaces with quirky merchandising shifted our bagel perception: They’re great for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Re-think your sandwich. Try the blueberry and chocolate chip varieties as snacks for the kids.

Bagels went from being an obscure ethnic food to a favorite for the average American. That’s why they’ve replaced the beloved donut as the nosh of choice for Monday morning business meetings.

Now Americans love bagels. Or do they?

Truth is, today’s standard bagel - soft, puffy and bland - is no more than a slice of Wonder Bread in disguise; authentic bagels are slightly crusty, chewy and a bit sweet. They used to be hand-prepared by curmudgeonly old men who learned the craft from other curmudgeonly old men; now bagels are machine-processed by teens in between text messages.

I don’t know if there’s a societal conspiracy going on, but we’ve endured a similar sham with marketing fundamentals. Allow me to explain.

Becoming a marketer used to require effort. Take some classes, read a few books, test some direct response campaigns. You got a gig in a marketing department and learned from people who actually had experience with what works and what doesn’t.

Then the Internet came along. Now every business could successfully promote itself - only without the requisite marketing skills. Just register the URL and design the site. Do some “digital” marketing. Create a blog, and if you really want to get crazy, go for a “micro” blog. Try your hand at mobile marketing and social media.

What’s the difference between these methods? Nothing. They’re all marketing in different forms. To be successful, no matter what you call the thing on the screen, you need marketing fundamentals.

Many profess that in the digital age, proven marketing principles no longer apply. Consumers used to be passive, but now they’re in control. True. That’s exactly why the fundamentals are more important than ever, because online, you want the person to do something – buy, sign-up, call, download - RIGHT NOW.

And that’s only possible by expressing why your product will improve lives, creating a compelling offer, and providing a practical benefit for taking action. But companies have been ignoring these critical basics and only focusing on how they deliver the message.

What they call the thing on the screen has become more important than what comprises the thing on the screen.

Thus the poor results. Thus the CEO who mutters in the elevator, “We spent 75 grand on that digital campaign and nothing’s improved. Nothing.” 

Technology does change, and people do adapt accordingly. But core human psychology hasn’t evolved in about 25 million years; it certainly hasn’t evolved since 1995. If you believe differently, you also believe that a pumpkin bagel with strawberry shmear is the real bagel experience. Enjoy it while your CEO chews you out.

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Album of the month
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The scene was the 1967 Monterey International Pop Festival. A laid-back Northern California crowd settled in, expecting to soak in the mellow vibes of Simon & Garfunkel, The Byrds, The Mamas and the Papas, The Grateful Dead and others. Then the unknown Jimi Hendrix Experience plugged in. Eardrums vibrated, minds melted, souls soared; angels cried, demons laughed. There had been nothing like it, a sound so far ahead of its time that it’s still ahead of its time. Jimi Plays Monterey captures the total Hendrix package: other-worldly guitar virtuoso, soulful vocalist, dynamic performer, with the versatility to go from the jet-fueled “Rock Me Baby” to the breathtaking “Wind Cries Mary”. Monterey was his first proper show on U.S soil. Check it out – it’s never too late to catch up with the future.