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Super Sunday for NAMM Member Music Store
Super Bowl XLIV was the most watched program in television history. And that's especially good news for NAMM Member Bob Turner, owner of Bizarre Guitar and Drum in Phoenix, AZ, who was featured in a Super Bowl ad for Miller High Life.
"So I get a random phone call one day from this girl who said she was from Miller High Life and asked me if I'd like to be on the Super Bowl," says Turner. "So I said 'What, the Super Bowl of Knitting?" And she said, "No, I mean the Big Game." Like anyone, Bob initially was skeptical, but after a video camera and some legal documents showed up at the store the next day, he began to realize the potential of this opportunity now at his door.
To qualify for the ad, Bob shot a video of the store and himself. "I just walked out in front of the store and took a quick picture," he said. "It was mid-December, so I had my shorts on in lovely Phoenix, walked around was just myself—I may not have carpet or track lighting, but I do have D45s and D42s and Les Pauls and Resonators and F5 mandolins," Bob said proudly into the camera.
A couple of days later the Miller representative called back and said that the brewer loved his video, calling him a true independent businessman and perfect for the campaign.
"I couldn't believe it. I had some people in the store when she told me and I got kinda giddy," he says.
"Did you just win the lottery? someone asked me." "Yeah, I think I did."
In early January, Miller High Life flew Bob and a member of his staff to California all expenses paid to film the commercial. Due to a family tragedy, Bob was unable to make it back for the NAMM Show just a few weeks later.
"My mom just died and unfortunately, I wasn't able to come to NAMM this year. I took this happening as a sign that after the kind of year we had in 2009, that at least 2010 was starting off a little better."
"Normally I always come to NAMM and it's a very enjoyable experience," Bob says. "I love seeing the products up close and meet the people face-to-face that I normally just talk to on the phone."
So what happens to a small business after being featured on the Super Bowl?
"Since Sunday, I've had a truckload of traffic (10x normal) and my phone is ringing constantly. So we've been having some good days," Bob says. "And this has given us very high hopes for what could happen. Now what you do is don't let the fire go down right now. The TV stations like NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, have been in, the radio stations and the newspapers have been in."
And now this good-natured NAMM Member has reason to be optimistic about the future. "This has given me a major shot in the arm and we're going to run with it until the cows come home," says Bob. "I also hope it brings good success to my fellow colleagues, who are fighting the good fight out there, and all of us make some money."
Thanks for representing the industry so well on the big stage, Bob!