"I'll have the #1 w/ a Coke"

Don't get cute, 'cuz cute don't pay the bills.

You ever been to a concert, or better yet, a festival, and it’s so many great artists on the lineup throughout the day? This is usually pretty awesome, but also, inherently, each artist gets an abridged time slot to do their set (much less than they would if they were performing alone). You following? This, then, makes each song they do perform take on that much more importance. Supply and demand dictates this. Shout out to Ms. Abernathy, my AP Econ teacher, who let us watch March Madness during class that one time.

Anywho, here’s my point:

No matter how said artist’s set is going, no matter how short it needs to be, or what type of crowd it’s performed for, or what city it’s in, odds are they’re gonna perform at least one of, if not THEE, biggest song in their catalog at some point. I mean, how could they not?

You know why? Because they’re where they are (being paid to stand in front of thousands) because they made their bones giving “the people” what they came for. They know what we, the people, like, and they’re gonna feed us exactly what we ordered.

Psst: They’re gonna serve up their “#1 w/ a Coke”.

This is where the phrase “play the hits” comes from. Or as I like to call it, the Don’t Get Cute, ‘Cuz Cute Don’t Pay The Bills Theory.

Now, a great while back, I wrote a little piece entitled “Apples & Mangoes” (linked there, unedited as always 🙈) + (y’all said we couldn’t compare apples to oranges 🙄. To which I disagree with, but it’s an age-old adage, so what was I to do? They aren’t that different, btw, it’s all fruit to me).

The TLDR is: not every important moment is a time for differentiation. Sometimes, the simple answer is the best answer.

Or put differently, the #1 w/ a Coke gets people in the door. That’s what it’s designed to do! Once people get in the door, everything else is up for grabs, sure. But you GOTTA get ‘em in the door first.

This goes for branding, first dates, job interviews, the evening news, you name it. Sometimes success is simply calling the thing “the thing”, and establishing your presence. In other words? Play… the… hits.

Take, for example, our friends Bob and Dora. You do know them...right? Sure you do! Walk with me.

Do you know what Bob’s favorite color is? Or how Dora takes her coffee? Nope. He’s too busy building and she’s too busy exploring; and we have all decided that that’s literally all we need to know about them. The result? Bob and Dora are rich as hell now, partly because of that.

Now, this isn’t to say he doesn’t love a nice olive green, and she doesn’t take heavy sugar and cream, it’s just to say that Bob builds, and Dora explores. They play the hits, they figured out where their bread was buttered long ago, and they made a habit of not burying the lede. They know that the #1 w/ a Coke is what brings people into the door.

Y’all hungry? Let’s try this. How many sausage biscuits you think Chick-fil-A sells every morning, per location? I could be wrong, but I’m thinking I could count them on my fingers and toes. (Justin, can you fact check me on this?)

Furthermore, I love Filet-o-Fishes, the Asiago Ranch joints, Spicy Chicken Fries, and Crunchwrap Supremes, but if it weren’t for Big Macs, Classic Singles, Whoppers, Regular Soft Tacos, etc. I may have never got around to trying them.

Listen, the value of being predictable is being consistent, even though it might feel “cliché”. And, in a world where cliché, somehow has become risqué, try not to get too cute. That last sentence was pretty cute though, methinks.

Hungry, but don’t know exactly what you have a taste for? #1 w/ a Coke.

Trying someplace new for the first time? #1 w/ a Coke

Too overwhelmed by the menu? #1 w/ a Coke.

Why? Because a #1 w/ a Coke is an American institution. A cornerstone of capitalism itself. It’s the upper funnel awareness builder. Because if they can’t get THAT right, that tells you everything you need to know.

Now go forth, be bold, and give the people what they came for. I’ll start...

For Lack of a Wetter Bird, don’t get cute, ‘cuz cute don’t pay the bills.

Note: Let me be clear, if you are at a music festival and your favorite artist hasn’t played his/her best song (yet), don’t yell out “#1 w/ a Coke!” in the crowd, because that phrase, at music festivals specifically, could and will mean something completely different than it does in this newsletter. Read the room. IJS.

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P.S. Wanna know my thoughts on french fries?