That oh so memorable soundtrack at 10:00 p.m. tells you to hold on and get ready for the one hour adrenaline rush through the eyes of our favorite Chicago emergency room. Who knew that this one hour slot of time was to turn into a TV and cultural phenomenon? In fact, several networks passed up on the ER pilot believing its mastermind, the late (and great) Michael Crichton, to be out of his Jurassic Park. Why would anyone want to watch an hour of drama focused on what goes on in an ER? The previously successful hospital primetime program was St. Elsewhere but that was more of a sitcom mix. This was something entirely different and the networks didn’t really know (or understand) what to do with ER. In the end, NBC bit (but not at first blush) hoping for another L.A. Law or Hill Street Blues. What they got was much more.
Fast forward 15 years, 122 Emmy nominations, 22 Emmy awards, and we’re at the end of a very long (and profitable) series. ER’s developers, producers, actors, directors – the entire program team redefined the TV drama. One of the best program brands today. They didn’t take a cookie-cutter approach and try to pigeon-hole their script into an existing program format. They took risks. Were consistent. Had passion. Were courageous. And built community.
Businesses might learn from ER’s success. Think about it. Do you have a distinction in your market? Are you unique? And do you have a community that supports you both internally and externally? In today’s extremely difficult marketplace, businesses must be true to their brand. While the business and CEO mantra today is retrench, it should be step up. Now is the time to take stock in your brand, readdress it and see if it is truly the valuable asset it should be.
So CEOs, business owners and marketers alike, when you sit down tonight to watch the final episode of this 15-year run, before you flatline, ask yourself, “Is my brand dying?” And, more importantly, “What am I going to do about it.”
ER can be counted as an iconic TV show brand because it was a game changer. It had a lot of influence on the perception of what a good TV show should be like, for both, the producers and the show’s audience. The importance of good drama writing with an increasing depth of character came back to TV, not alone through ER, but it was an important player in the game.
Transfer this to your brand today and you can draw the potential that might lay ahead of you. Game changers dare to be different, they stand out and tell the world “here’s something you didn’t expect”.
Great use of a cultural phenomenon to teach the impact of brand strategy. ER’s brand, while long out of my life, was a big part of things in the first few years. The “Loves Labor’s Lost” episode remains one of the great dramatic memories of my t.v. watching experience. I think the producers were clear they wanted to create something special, entertaining, and memorable. All brand attributes from within.
Thanks Henning for your comment. Love the reference to “game changer” and it’s right on.