Blog 9. Terra Burger: What were they thinking?

Right in between Madam Mam’s and Pipe Plus, there is a piece of real estate on Guadalupe St. that can’t seem to find the perfect fit. Restaurants come and restaurants go, and none of them seem to make a lasting impression on the fifty thousand college students that occupy the forty acres of UT campus five days a week.
As I thought about what I believed to be the perfect addition the “drag,” I noticed yet another effort to revive the space: Terra Burger. Terra Burger specializes in organic burgers and promises to offer only the freshest meat and produce supplied by certified organic local farms. This seems like it would definitely appeal to the whole foods eating, whole earth wearing population in Austin, but does Terra Burger realize it is located in the middle of a college campus?
My question for them: What makes you think that college kids will pay seven to eight dollars for an organic burger? College students are stereotypically not concerned with their health and more concerned with their bill fold. What about the Terra Burger is going to make a penny pinching college student spend a few extra bucks?
Maybe they are hoping that because it is located in Austin, it will draw in health conscious customers from all over the city. But there are few parking options on the drag, making it a pretty big hassle to get to the burger joint if you are not just passing by.
Maybe Terra Burger believes that there product tastes better than any competitor. Still, organic and healthy food typically has a negative correlation with a person’s belief that the food will taste good. Despite the facts, hamburger lovers with see a healthy burger sitting next to a greasy burger from Dirty Martins and assume the later will be way more satisfying. I think Terra Burger will have a problem getting this market to try their product.
Furthermore, I believe many health-conscience Austinites are either vegan or vegetarian. Although Terra Burger has several vegetarian options, I believe a burger joint can not rely on vegetarians to pay their bills.
I think that Terra Burger was looking for a place to expand their franchise. They saw Austin as the healthiest city in the nation. So it seems like the perfect place to expand their healthy mission. They noticed the heavily populated University of Texas campus and thought it was no brainer. Still, after roaming the streets of campus for nearly 4 years, I’d be surprised to see a Texas Fiji grab an organic burger for lunch. I’d be surprised if the longhorn athlete, who can rarely get enough calories in their stomach to make up for the ones they’re burning, would choose the healthy option. If the freshman girls who still have the metabolism of an elementary school student decided to suddenly start buying organic, I wouldn’t believe it. No student on scholarship who is paying for their education is going to pay a few extra dollars for the healthy choice.
Terra Burger probably has a market in Austin. But maybe they need to relocate to the Dell campus, where health conscience business professionals who don’t have time to exercise but have the money to spend on healthy living are looking for a place to eat out for lunch.
And for now…we will continue to find the missing link to the drag.

Blog 8: Outline- I don't even know the line-up

Music Festivals: I Don’t Know the Line-Up

Introduction:
As I jammed out all weekend long, the world outside the gates of Austin City Limits slipped away. I forgot about writing papers and reading articles. I forgot about air conditioning and breathing clean air. I forgot that a scoop of Amy’s Ice Cream does not always cost five dollars.

I go to ACL for far more than the music. I go to ACL to see 65,000 people come together and enjoy something awesome. And we enjoy the atmosphere that encompasses all of Zilker Park. A park that I was playing volleyball in last month and will be viewing Christmas lights in next season, has, for the moment, been completely transformed.

Only in its sixth year of existence, ACL has already drawn in thousands of customers that pay hundreds of dollars for one ticket. And other music festivals just like it exist all over the country. Each one exists in a different city, possibly in a different month, with thousands of different people who all have one thing in common: they are paying to see, smell, feel, taste, and listen to one unforgettable weekend.

Thesis:

It is the music that brings us to music festivals for the first time, but it is the experience that keeps us coming back.

I. Sounds- Live Music

i. Background and history of live music and music festivals, concerts

ii. Psychological effects of loud music

iii. Actions as a result of listening to live music


II. Sights

i. Apparel of customers

ii. Things to do in addition to listening to music
a. Shopping
b. Promotion teams, free hand outs

iii. Various traditions at festivals
a. Find your friend flag

III. Tastes

i. Beer
a. Sponsors
b. Numbers of cans
c. Prices

ii. Food
a. Sponsors
b. Common menu items available
c. Favorites
d. Prices

IV. Smells

i. Marijuana
a. What it smells like
b. Associations with live music and pot
c. Reasons for smoking at concerts

ii. Sweat
a. What it smells like
b. Explain exhaustion from spending several days at music festival
c. Heat- discuss seasons and reason for dates of several festivals

V. Feelings

i. Ease
a. Commute to and from the festival
b. Readily available ATM’s and water fountains

ii. Community involvement
a. Being with a crowd of people who are enjoying what you are
enjoying
b. Picking up trash/ recycle program
c. Ability to be a volunteer/seeing volunteers as approachable
members of community

iii. Safety
a. Security Guards
b. Tag your Kid services
c. Police Officers
d. Water Stations
e. Patrol entrance by wristbands

iv. Fun

Conclusion:

If you don’t know the headliner, it doesn’t matter anymore. There is much more to the music festival experience than the list of bands playing. Days of research and planning help design the perfect weekend for the customer. The sounds, sights, tastes, smells, and feelings make it perfect and unforgettable. And although it is the music that brings us to music festivals for the first time, but it is the unforgettable experience that keeps us coming back.