JOEL BIEBER'S BLOG

What Does an Ad Mean?

Joan wrote the following reply to one of my blogs:

 " What are you trying to say about yourself and your brand by appearing with a cartoon character in your advertisement? Is the green monster supposed to be the person on the street? Yes, the ad caught my attention; however,did you mean to gain comical and somewhat whimsical, light attention? What is the relationship between the green monster and you? Was the green monster your idea?" 

She was asking about one of our firm legal ads that is currently on air. It rotates with some ads, where I am basically just looking in the camera and asking people to call. I think that me looking into the camera is a bit boring, but at least it still reminds people to call; What advertisers call "top of mind awareness". (TOMA)

The ad that Joan was asking about, "stars" an animated character that I call "Glob". He looks part frog and part unidentifiable friendly animal. The ad is really just another method to remind people of what the firm does, and the basic premise that we do injury law. It's hard to say a whole lot in just 30 seconds. 

Joan's questions are probably what we were aiming for. I have been advertising for so long that people barely even comment on our ads. If someone does, it usually means that, at least, the commented ad grabbed attention for some reason.

I had a mother, a while back, tell me that her 5 year old couldn't stand my legal ads.  In the past, I would hear all kinds of stories about how kids liked a certain ad and would remind their parents to call Joel Bieber. As time has gone on, I suppose that I have gotten more conservative in my ads. It's probably a product of me, more than paying attention to what works. 

A good ad gets attention and is remembered. However, it can't be one that puts me in a position where I am not taken seriously, when I stand in front of a jury. Effectiveness and Professionalism are really either competing or working well together. If I am successful, then I guess they are working together.

  I'm not sure if that answers Joan's questions. However, That mother of the 5 year old recently told me that her son can't get enough of the ad starring "Glob". He wants to see it over and over. Hopefully, he doesn't think that Glob is a monster, as Joan suggested. I want Glob to create a good feeling about the firm and just remind people that I am out here, if they need me.   

Oh, John Edwards!

You know the world is topsy turvy when you hear that a hunter is recovering, after being shot by his own dog. In some respects, I think that I have avoided blogging on John Edwards because of his background as a trial lawyer.  I must admit, I can't help myself. Whenever I see something Edwards that is on TV or in print, I stop all for more details. This, despite feeling like a shot from my own profession.

If you view Edwards in the context as a trial lawyer,  I think that he really is hurting the profession. Message boards say such things as "What do you expect" or "A lawyer who is getting what he deserves". 20/20 spent their entire one hour show, interviewing Edwards' former aide and playing transcripts from Mr and Mrs. None of the material made Edwards, his wife or his mistress look very good.

Time did an eleven page excerpt on the continuing Edwards' story of cheating and cover-up. Slate.com outlined how Edwards got caught. Fortunately, my choice of a career path was not influenced by someone like Edwards. This blog isn't really about the conduct of John Edwards.  It's more about  simple actions that impacted a 7 year old. For optimization purposes, though, a title involving good conduct will not grab the attention like "Oh, John Edwards!".

 In Chattanooga, Tennessee, a T-ball baseball league was being formed. As a 7 year old, I was excited that my parents were letting me play. I was even going to be a starter. Well, I probably should add that everyone started, since there would be 18 players in the field. Initially, I think that my assigned position was "stay out of the way".

One practice, our team manager announced that our uniforms would be in at the next practice. I knew that our manager was a lawyer, and I think that my parents explained a little about what that was. I remember that however they described what a lawyer did left an impression on me that my manager was doing something important.

The day the uniforms arrived, there weren't enough jerseys to go around. In the game of musical jerseys, I got left out. They gave me a jersey from another team and then just put a patch over the other team name. It made me feel less than the other players who had real team jerseys. I was proud to play for the fleas but not so proud of my jersey.

My manager/lawyer saw what had happened and he told those handing out the jerseys that he wanted one like mine. They took a jersey and put a patch across his chest that also said Fleas. Now, I thought I had the best jersey on the team.

I remember doing everything that I could to get better at T-ball baseball. In fact, I got a "promotion of position" and became the second baseman. I couldn't tell you how we did that year or how I even did in fielding or hitting. I do know that I thought that being a lawyer was pretty special. That man made an impact on a 7 year old that would have some impact on what I thought of lawyers. Maybe, John Edwards would have benefited from playing for the Fleas.  

No Elevator Music

Everything for the weekend went great, including an Indianapolis Colts' win. Well, almost, if I can conveniently forget the elevator experience. Unfortunately, it was a reminder of how people look to run from responsibility.

 My wife and I were on a high floor at the hotel. There were several elevators, so when elevator number 5 came to the floor, it had no magical look to it. We got on and made our descent. Every time the elevator would stop, it would make a sudden lurching motion.

I know what you're thinking, "why didn't you just get off?" Well, part of it was denial that anything was wrong and part that, surely it's just my imagination. You see those inspection signs and just expect that all is well. Having handled an elevator case in the past, though, I should have been equipped with a higher sense of awareness.  Elevators still operate on the same basic methods as when initially invented, with the benefits of technology and motorized or hydraulic speed.

Anyway, back to the elevator trip. Apparently, we stopped on 3 floors because there were three other men and two little cheerleaders from the cheerleading competition, which could be a whole study on human behavior by parents. Seven of us were on the elevator.

I've run this story long with the obvious ending; the elevator got stuck and we weren't getting off. I guess my fears relate to flying and loss of control. One small benefit in not being fearful of enclosed spaces. Still, being trapped on an elevator is no fun and if you have that "closing in feeling" as you read this, then you probably stopped reading about a paragraph earlier. I won't be more descriptive.

 The final "punch line" to this story is when hotel maintenance got the elevator open about 20 minutes later. We had to duck and jump out, since we were not evenly on the floor. As soon as we got out, there was a hotel employee with a clipboard who wanted to take our names.

Since I have a bit of an independent streak, I just kept walking. My much nicer wife said that they probably wanted to give us something, so she went back to give our names. I felt like I was back in pharmaceutical litigation. They weren't taking our names for our benefit; the hotel wanted to determine the names of the guests, so they could figure out if we had overloaded the elevator by number of people or weight.

One final note. A recent case that came into the office, involves a government vehicle. At the scene of the crash, the defendant driver refused to talk to my client. By a freedom of information request, I received their handbook on accidents. It told their drivers to specifically make no statements at the scene. Like the elevator and the hotel employee, they couldn't even ask if everyone was ok.

       

The Friday Blog Try

I have to admit that I am headed to Indianapolis for some NFL football. Tomorrow night the Colts will be playing the Ravens and I have been a bit distracted. That, coupled with the fact that this is a Friday blog should give me a little license in what I am posting today.

I regularly read several law blogs. Usually they aren't attention grabbers. How exciting can it be to read about new "Blue Sky Laws" for Security actions? However, one just grabbed my attention on "The Unwritten Rules of Law Firms". It is a supposed collection of rules that should be passed on for Law Firm conduct that made me laugh and also made me nod my head. Here are a few of them:

Rule #408 -- Don’t lay claim to your personal coffee mug by mass e-mail.

Rule #78 -- It is impossible to send an e-mail longer than two paragraphs without a typo.

Rule #765 -- A managing partner should never walk the halls in stocking feet.

Rule #189 -- Docketing “twittering” to client development is sure to invite ridicule.

Rule #685 -- Don’t hang a picture of yourself wearing a bathing suit in your office.

Rule #441 -- If you’re under 50 and using a fountain pen you’re trying too hard.

Rule #210 -- Make funny faces and adoring comments when a new baby visits no matter what you’re thinking.

Rule #923 -- Telling colleagues their voice message is out of date is not an act to win friends.

Rule #29 -- Do not send out any e-mail to "All Users" unless the building is on fire.

Rule #111 -- For every 100 lawyers in a law firm there will be at least one lawyer who will instruct his or her secretary to print out all of their incoming e-mails for them to review.

Rule #242 -- Put the bow ties away until you reach the age of 50 (or unless you grew up on Nantucket).

I'm not a big fan of bow ties, so I had to especially agree with that one. Since I'm not quite to 50, I may feel immediately older on that day. However, I think that I will feel as "chipper" as I do today, so maybe that's not a good age to act like some magical cut-off for legal attire. A better age, I think, would be 101. Then, anything goes. In addition, if the Colts win on Saturday night, I think I'll feel like 16 again. Well, maybe not quite!

Chamber of Commerce Looks at Court

I know that you are probably going to say that I am beating a dead horse. I can't help myself. I wanted to mention a lawsuit that the US Chamber of Commerce is thinking about filing. It's interesting that when they want to file a lawsuit, it's not considered frivolous, if they allege that they are doing it for the good of business.

The Chamber is considering a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency because they claim that the EPA is overstepping its bounds. They want to stop the Agency from determining that certain greenhouse gases are pollutants and endanger public safety.

I know that greenhouse gases is like watching peat moss grow, so I won't focus the blog on the lawsuit. However, I wanted to simply point out that the Chamber is agreeable when Agencies are supportive and they immediately threaten lawsuits when they think that something might impact them. The red flag of this press release is that  "this will raise taxes and cost jobs". It's worth clicking on the link to see the double-speak.

This is something that always becomes an issue in every administration. How much authority does a bureaucrat have. My position has always been that if they aren't elected and there is a question of law, then either the Courts should decide or the legislators should clarify.

One final note on this press release from the Chamber. In his "State of American Business" address, Chamber CEO Tom Donohue set forth his five areas where business and government should work together. In fact, the planks do make sense. However, one caught my eye. I knew that tort reform would sneak in there somewhere.

     Under the guise of discussing good fiscal policies, Donohue raised the issue of proper business planning. He called it "economic uncertainties". He believes that legislators should remove such legal uncertainties. That is code for implementing caps. What he means is that businesses should know how much their wrongful conduct might cost them. If they are going to put out a bad product, those "economic uncertainties" of what a jury verdict might be, could certainly be limiting in business growth. I'll leave that as the ending sentence for your consideration of the Chamber's agenda.
 

A False Balance

The artwork known as "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", always captivates me. The characters at the Diner all have the same thing in common; They all died too young in the apparent chase for a brighter future. Hence the name.

As I watched NFL football this weekend, I saw the New England Patriots go down to a crushing defeat, at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens. The Patriots' coach, Bill Belichick, will forever be linked to cheating in the NFL. Despite the fact that many Boston fans and NFL moguls have attempted to sweep that episode under the rug, "Coach Cheat" cannot escape the fact that he hasn't really won, since they took his cheating videos away, after the filming of opponents.

If I had art talent, I'd probably paint "A Cup of Cheat". It would be a Diner scene with Bernie Madoff serving coffee. Across the Diner counter would be Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds and Bill Belichick. I think the painting would speak for itself. If you don't know some of those characters, it is worth reading about their sporting and cheating escapades. I didn't even include Tiger Woods but maybe he would be walking in the door.

Proverbs 11:1 says that  "A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight." Apparently, dishonest vendors would use weights to measure out things like produce, that inaccurately identified the amounts. Thus, a 5lb weight might really be 4lbs. Over and over, if you save a pound of meat, you turn a much larger profit. The incorrect weight obviously impacted the scales of balance.

I used to hear jokes about butchers. It would be said that "he sure has a heavy thumb". It was explained that some dishonest butchers would push the scale down with the thumb and again, short the person buying the meat.

Have you ever heard, "show me a person going through hard times and I'll show you the person"? In tough times, people take shortcuts. We've also seen that in prosperous times, people like bankers and stock brokers have  taken shortcuts too. For some reason, it became acceptable to  be "clever" and "clever" was associated with "getting over on someone".

The statue of a blind folded "Lady Justice" is supposed to mean that everyone walks into the Courtroom with an equal opportunity. We count on Judges not having "heavy thumbs" or attorneys being truthful with the evidence. In a short time, a jury has to decide a case, based on what should be accurate evidence.

Proverbs 11:1 is still good advice. It is a reminder that God is delighted by a just weight. The joke of, "I'd better take this before someone steals it" may still be the philosphy of some, but that Proverbs is a reminder of the importance of doing the right thing, including when it comes to the Courtroom. Short term success, I guess, can come from a false weight. Maybe those in "Cup of Cheat" would teach us a lesson about the long term effects.  

New Year Thoughts

I am always personally drawn to making New Year's resolutions. I haven't kept score over the years but I think that I have kept at least a couple. Of course, I always chuckle when I hear about the man that said, "I have one New Year's resolution and that's not to make any resolutions, and I always am proud to say that I kept my one resolution".

The start of a new year is also a time when surveys usually ask people if they are better off now, then they were a year ago. Last year, I remember the answer to be in the negative. This year, I expect a continuing downturn.

Many have described our current economy as just above the Great Depression. My generation can only relate to those times through pictures. However, the following enduring song was sung on street corners, to describe what people were going through.

"They used to tell me I was building a dream, with peace and glory ahead. Why should I be standing in line, just waiting for some bread? Once I built a railroad, I made it run, made it race against time. Once I built a railroad; now it's done, Brother can you spare a dime?"

In "The Snowball; Warren Buffett and the Business of Life", it recites the letter that Buffett's grandfather wrote to his father, containing advice to be a success in life. The letter read, "Try to be punctual in all your dealings. You will find it difficult to get along with some men, deal as little as possible with such.... Save your credit, for that is better than money... If you go into business, be content with moderate gains. Don't be too  hasty to get too rich. I want you to live so as to be fit to live and fit to die."

To conclude this blog, I overlay these two stories that I hope to grasp in the coming year. There are a lot of people that need help. Hopefully, I will be able to help some that come across my path. The business practices of Warren Buffett, well, they are known to be successful. Hopefully I will be a wiser businessman. The last sentence of his grandfather's advice is also a reminder to live in the present and for eternity. It brings to mind the saying, "Only one life, will soon be past, only what's done for God will last". 

  

Rudolph and His Red Nose

This will get your attention to start off a blog. There are similarities with the US Senate passing a health-care bill and the story of Rudolph the Red-nosed reindeer. There's more to this story than reindeer friends making fun of him, until he became a success. Let me prove it to you.

 According to Snopes.com, Rudolph was an idea that came about in 1939 when Montgomery Ward asked one of its copywriters, 34-year-old Robert May, to come up with a promotional Christmas story.  May was influenced by his childhood, as well as the story of the Ugly Duckling, and decided to write about an underdog reindeer who was ostracized by his community, because of his glowing nose.

At this point, the promotion almost went nowhere because management was concerned that this reindeer  would be rejected by the public as an alcoholic, because of his red nose. In addition, he was initially called Rollo, which was deemed as sounding to cheerful for a misfit. Then, the name of Rollo was rejected as too formal or "British sounding".

Finally the name of Rudolph was approved and May decided to "test" the story of Rudolph on his 4-year-old daughter. Not surprisingly, she loved it, which he used in his meeting of approval with Montgomery Ward management again, The Rudolph promotional booklet was published and distributed.

 During the war period, there was great demand, but that swelled in the post-war period. Because May was an employee, he held no rights and received no royalties from the Rudolph copyright. During this same period, his wife past away from a long terminal illness and he was left with his young daughter and huge medical bills that were impossible to pay. The President of Montgomery Ward, Sewell Avery, turned the copyright over to May in January, 1947. Then, May developed a nine minute cartoon that was played in theaters, that increased its popularity.

The big break through came in 1949, when Gene Autry recorded the Rudolph melody that had been written by May's brother-in-law. Prior to that, the song had been rejected by many who thought that the legend of Santa would be its downfall. 2 million copies of the song were sold. In 1964, Burl Ives narrated the cartoon that still plays today.

Now to the healthcare tie in. The proceeds easily paid for his overwhelming medical bill debt. In 1951, he quit his copywriting job and spent 7 years managing his creation. Then, he returned to work at Montgomery Ward until his retirement in 1971. His creation provided comfortably for him until his death in 1976.

I don't want to make this a political piece about the national health-care debate. This is just one man's story of how he was able to pay his bills with his creativity, as well as the generosity of Mr Sewell. If you go to the attachment, you will also find out how the story has changed since its creation. For instance, Rudolph did not live at the North Pole and he originally was not one of Santa's reindeer. All said, that 1939 creation that brought a smile to his 4-year-old daughter, continues to bring a smile to us all.   

Salt Harms

Last week, as the snow was descending on the house and yard, it looked beautiful. I was out in it with my "camera phone", taking pictures. It was a white Christmas and I could almost hear Bing Crosby singing in the backyard.

This morning, the snow wasn't as fun. As I drove out of my driveway, I got stuck. I spent the next half hour turning, reversing and driving forward, to escape the ice. I even got the amazing idea of using the other car to push it out of the rut. Of course, I was only to blame because I had not done any shoveling. I've always heard that snow shoveling is really worse on your heart than eating lard. I'm staying with that idea, too.

It shows how things have changed. I remember people strapping on chains to the tires. Now, everyone has fancy tires that are supposed to dig in the snow. Many cars have all wheel drive. Truck drivers are not the only ones going the speed limit now, in the winter.

I also remember all the salt that was spread on the highway. Road salt was always supposed to make it easy for the snow plows and helped to keep the roads from freezing. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 15 million tons of salt was used in the USA last year. Plus, since it's "natural", shouldn't we feel good about it?

Well, of course, it makes the blog because we now know that it causes problems. A Google search brings articles on salt harm; some more than 10 years old. We now know that melting snow and ice causes the salt to run off on to vegetation, soil, streams and rivers. The runoff kills fish and vegetation and has even been found in residential drinking water. Fortunately, some other alternatives are being used and Scientists are working on new ideas.

In the practice of law, you sometimes find out information in litigation that might not be helpful, but is interesting. For instance, when someone broke into a Tylenol manufacturing plant and added poison to some of the bottles, deposition questioning showed that the cotton in those bottles, served no purpose. It was only there because consumers would not buy the tylenol without it. People thought that cotton kept them fresh. So, every bottle was manufactured with "fake fresh cotton". Of course, good also came out of that litigation, because safety caps were installed.

   Knowledge that someone could break into a medicine bottle caused changes. Knowledge that salt can cause harm that is long term, is also now instituting change. What has been acceptable for years does not make it right. Now, I just need to learn how not to get stuck in my own driveway!   

  

The Letter Power

The cracking of the top of the banana set off the chain reaction. The sound of eight paws running down the stairs sounded like a national geographic special. The two dogs came running to the kitchen table and began to beg for a piece of banana. The dog owners explained to me that their dogs craved bananas like a steak, when they heard that peel.  I could see it but could I believe it?

I received a letter from the Governor-elect of Virginia, with a promise of what was going to be accomplished in the next four years. The letter said, "more jobs, less taxes and less litigation". More jobs and less taxes sound great. Of course, politicians usually say that and explain that the formula to cut taxes is to cut wasteful spending. The last part of the quote, "less litigation", caught my attention. Was that a buzz word for taking away the right to hold "at fault" parties accountable? What was I to believe about this letter?

Congressman Pete Sessions (R-TX) recently sent a fund raising letter that mentioned another member of the US House of Representatives. In trying to raise funds, he addressed the speech of Congressman Bruce Braley (D-IA), who had taken the House floor and asked that consideration be given to the $17 to $28 Billion that was being spent annually, to treat those injured by medical neglect.The medical professionals originally responsible had passed on the cost now, to the tax payer or insurance carrier.

  Congressman Sessions' letter attacked Braley by writing, "Pelosi even tapped Rep. Bruce Braley, a former trial lawyer who made a living from filing frivolous lawsuits, as the Democrat to voice opposition to tort reform".   I'm not sure how a lawyer could make a living by filing frivolous lawsuits anymore than a grocery store that stays in business by selling green meat.

In some of these fund raiser and political letters, I suppose it's almost like a crack of the banana that causes some to come running. Maybe certain statements really cause "big business to reach for their wallets to finance lobbying efforts. They hear the words tort reform or limiting lawsuits and it immediately gets them thinking that they have grabbed on to some steak.

When I was in high school, I remember a band that played in the gym, that was a collection of characters called "Jimmy and the Bananas, the band with 'a peel'". That still gives me a good laugh. Some of the political letters make me laugh too. Shouldn't everyone be laughing?