Ecclestone interview
Discussion
He talks a lot of truth. It's an entertainment business now and probably always has been in the modern era. It'll be interesting to see if he's right about social media, Private Eye regularly run items purportedly showing that the return for companies using social media is much hyped up.
MartG said:
If you don't engage with young people in a few years you will have no fans at all - though of course Bernie doesn't care about that because he'll be dead ( hopefully )
Maybe but I wasn't interested in F1 when I was a yoof but I am now. Not sure he's right about advertising either. A twenty-year-old may not be able to afford a Rolex now but you might plant the seed so he buys one when he's older.The Hypno-Toad said:
Was just going to post this myself.
I've been saying for weeks the bloke has totally lost the plot. He needs to go.
NOW!
What exactly is your criticism? I've been saying for weeks the bloke has totally lost the plot. He needs to go.
NOW!
I thought the interview came across really well, that he has a very good understanding of all the issues and goings on in F1, very open about it and never gets angry or critical. I certainly learnt a few things from it too about F1's marketing strategy.
Obviously it being an Asian news story they have focused on that too which will rile up those who think every race should be in Europe but really saying "he must go" without justification is like football sack the manager after 2 losses attitude.
"Entertainment is what people want to see. If you asked me tonight to go to the ballet and said it’s fantastic, I would say, it’s not for me. Sure, it’s good entertainment for a lot of people but it doesn’t suit me. If I asked people who like ballet if they wanted to go to a Formula One race, they wouldn’t particularly want to go. We don’t know what people like and don’t like. Maybe if I tried it, I’d love ballet. I just can’t understand the reason why they have these girls dancing on their toes. Why don’t they get taller girls? It would be so much easier. "
Why don’t they get taller girls- genius !!
I like Bernie a lot - I don't agree with him on every point. But he made F1 into the beast that it is. Without him it probably wouldn't exist.
Why don’t they get taller girls- genius !!
I like Bernie a lot - I don't agree with him on every point. But he made F1 into the beast that it is. Without him it probably wouldn't exist.
MartG said:
If you don't engage with young people in a few years you will have no fans at all - though of course Bernie doesn't care about that because he'll be dead ( hopefully )
You are saying that as if the thing you like at the age of 14 will be the same thing you like until you die. I can see why you think this because the Premier League teams go to great efforts to lock young spectators into their tribe (aka team) from a young age and encourage you to inherit this from your parents/family too.However people always take up new interests as they grow, mature and change. I know I've taken new interest in some sports and disciplines at an older age and others from my youth I've lost some interest in too.
Personally I find some marketing tactics towards children, for example signing up to frequent flyer programs at single digit ages a bit too aggressive for my liking, so I appreciate that F1 does not force itself upon us.
rovermorris999 said:
A twenty-year-old may not be able to afford a Rolex now but you might plant the seed so he buys one when he's older.
Agree with your pointA twenty year old isn't going to be interested in SAP (McLaren),but a business might. Yet McLaren ran with MaxiMuscle the year before which would appeal to the younger generation, but not to a business. From that I get the teams don't really care what they are advertising as long as the money from sponsorship is coming in.
It would be interesting to poll the "young" to identify what brands they recognise from F1 - I would bet Red Bull would top the list, and Monster energy would be high up even though its only advertised in a few subtle areas.
Bernie has finally lost the plot and now needs to go...
As a 27 year old ive follow F1 religiously for 15 years now, I think ive only missed 2 or 3 races.
If Bernie doesnt think F1 needs to appeal to younger fans then he's delusional where are the fans going to come from? If F1 didnt appeal to me when I was 12 then I wouldnt be the F1 fan I am today.
I do feel that F1 is on a massive downward spiral if Bernie stays in charge, he's done nothing but slate the sport he made so popular, he seems a man unable to grasp the technology being used and just no longer makes sense when he's interviewed, he's like a bumbling old man.
Maybe its time for a younger, fresher faced man at the top. My view is someone like Toto Wolff would be very good for F1, he's honest, speaks his mind and I genuinely think he knows what people want from F1. He's obviously also very business smart.
Bernie... dont let door hit your arse on the way out.
As a 27 year old ive follow F1 religiously for 15 years now, I think ive only missed 2 or 3 races.
If Bernie doesnt think F1 needs to appeal to younger fans then he's delusional where are the fans going to come from? If F1 didnt appeal to me when I was 12 then I wouldnt be the F1 fan I am today.
I do feel that F1 is on a massive downward spiral if Bernie stays in charge, he's done nothing but slate the sport he made so popular, he seems a man unable to grasp the technology being used and just no longer makes sense when he's interviewed, he's like a bumbling old man.
Maybe its time for a younger, fresher faced man at the top. My view is someone like Toto Wolff would be very good for F1, he's honest, speaks his mind and I genuinely think he knows what people want from F1. He's obviously also very business smart.
Bernie... dont let door hit your arse on the way out.
Bernie doesn't understand Social Media.
What he does understand that he doesn't want to give away his content and IP without someone paying. That's not just to protect his content - that protects all the deals he does for the whole grid.
I've run a web agency for 20years. I know what the internet can do.
It pretty much killed off the recording industry - first Napster and now youtube, spotify etc are giving artists content away for free or next to nothing. Copyright infringement is rife and if you can most people download something for free rather than paying.
( That's why live music has had such a resurgence - you can't pirate a live gig. And why some of these old bands are still touring!)
Bernie's right about some aspects of social media. Bebo, Myspace, ASW etc etc are all worthless now or gone.
Twitter still doesn't have a business model that can generate proper revenue. They all rely on someone else to give them content eg us and when we get bored - we move on.
Facebook is in decline. Kids are using Snapchat now for their social interactions
But - F1 has to start to embrace some areas.
All ages want to watch content on whatever device they have and at whatever time.
Somehow they need to look at how to deliver that content.
Currently the teams want to do more of it. But they cannot show any content at the circuits or cars on track from a race weekend.
FOM need to loosen their grip a little and allow the teams to have a bit more flexibility.
For instance - we look after a GP2 driver. I wanted to have a homepage video banner - 5 sec clip. We weren't permitted to use it.
That's crazy.
What he does understand that he doesn't want to give away his content and IP without someone paying. That's not just to protect his content - that protects all the deals he does for the whole grid.
I've run a web agency for 20years. I know what the internet can do.
It pretty much killed off the recording industry - first Napster and now youtube, spotify etc are giving artists content away for free or next to nothing. Copyright infringement is rife and if you can most people download something for free rather than paying.
( That's why live music has had such a resurgence - you can't pirate a live gig. And why some of these old bands are still touring!)
Bernie's right about some aspects of social media. Bebo, Myspace, ASW etc etc are all worthless now or gone.
Twitter still doesn't have a business model that can generate proper revenue. They all rely on someone else to give them content eg us and when we get bored - we move on.
Facebook is in decline. Kids are using Snapchat now for their social interactions
But - F1 has to start to embrace some areas.
All ages want to watch content on whatever device they have and at whatever time.
Somehow they need to look at how to deliver that content.
Currently the teams want to do more of it. But they cannot show any content at the circuits or cars on track from a race weekend.
FOM need to loosen their grip a little and allow the teams to have a bit more flexibility.
For instance - we look after a GP2 driver. I wanted to have a homepage video banner - 5 sec clip. We weren't permitted to use it.
That's crazy.
^^
"F1 does not need young fans - Ecclestone"
http://www.espn.co.uk/f1/motorsport/story/184001.h...
"I'd rather get to the 70-year-old guy who's got plenty of cash. So, there's no point trying to reach these kids because they won't buy any of the products here and if marketers are aiming at this audience, then maybe they should advertise with Disney."
Sad out look of F1 for tomorrow!
"F1 does not need young fans - Ecclestone"
http://www.espn.co.uk/f1/motorsport/story/184001.h...
"I'd rather get to the 70-year-old guy who's got plenty of cash. So, there's no point trying to reach these kids because they won't buy any of the products here and if marketers are aiming at this audience, then maybe they should advertise with Disney."
Sad out look of F1 for tomorrow!
"Nobody will miss’ Marussia, Caterham in F1" – Ecclestone
Caterham will race in Abu Dhabi - http://www.crash.net/f1/news/210949/1/caterham-f1-...
I wonder if he will be made welcome on the paddock.
Caterham will race in Abu Dhabi - http://www.crash.net/f1/news/210949/1/caterham-f1-...
I wonder if he will be made welcome on the paddock.
Gassing Station | Formula 1 | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff