About Me

 

For this week's assignment, the location of the company I'll be discussing takes us to Portland, Oregon. More specifically, one of the city's hot and fresh music venues: The North Warehouse. These days, feeling old and arthritic as one does in their mid-20s, it’s a rare occasion that I venture out for a night on the town. One of those rare occasions struck this past December when I purchased a ticket with some friends for a New Year's Eve event at, none other than, The North Warehouse. The show was described as ‘a world fusion musical group with circus performances’, something fun and unique I was excited for! I’ll be frank here, it was an absolute fiasco of mayhem leading up to the night of the event. Needless to say, I’ve been on a deep dive into the Rose City venue since the purchase of my tickets and found they’ve been in some serious hot water.

Starting with their background, I combed through The North Warehouse’s website and various social media pages, and found little information available on their mission, value proposition, and any other behind-the-scenes intel other than what was stated in their Instagram bio, “Reviving the underground warehouse vibe in the PNW on Funktion One Sound.” I'll expand on that with what I’ve learned in my research, and add that The North Warehouse is somewhat of a social nightclub, embarking on a cultural revival of the underground, all-night dance parties of the 90s. On their website and Instagram page you can find ticket sales, partnering food vendors, and their merch line.

Despite the prior mentioned vague information provided, The Warehouse is incredibly active on social media. My investigations revealed they have a new team behind their online presence, and so far are showing the beginnings of what could be successful storytelling in the marketing of their brand. They’ve posted a handful of trending TikTok videos geared towards their niche audience, and most notably, have devoted much of their Instagram page to posting photos of concert attendees.

 

I’ll note here that though the warehouse itself is a historic building of the city, the grand opening of The North Warehouse as it’s known today was just three years ago in 2021. Their tactic of posting photos of ticket buyers has the potential to boost their brand recognition and connect with consumers, both vital components for building a young brand. It’s clear in their comments, as can be seen in the examples above, that people are stoked to see shots of themselves on the page and seem enthusiastic about the interactive communication available. If it were me in charge behind the scenes, I think expanding on these stepping stones with more blog-style content would help the brand flourish- posting videos of interviews and set-up-process with artists, inspiration for makeup and outfits based on the persona they want to establish, and more interactive aspects with voting polls for artists they'd like to see and chosen themes for events.

Regarding the unfortunate event after the purchase of my tickets: On December 16th, Portland Fire Marshal Kari Schimel abruptly closed down The North Warehouses event. Willamette Week released an article discussing the event on their website stating, “That closure came five days after WW began asking city fire and building code inspectors about hundreds of pages of emails and inspection reports that showed The North Warehouse’s yearlong history of noncompliance with city code.”

To read more on that article- Willamette Weekly Shuts Down Portland Dance Club

In light of the news of the closure, people took to social media to express their concerns. They asked about refunds, if the event was still going to happen at a different location, and expressed frustration that their safety was in jeopardy with no expressed apologies from the company. In the end, a new location was found and announced less than a week before New Year's Eve, but this last-minute venue change was not what buyers paid for. Instagram users left comments that they had already booked hotels and Airbnb's specifically for their proximity to the original address and were disappointed that artists on the lineup had dropped out due to the chaos of the venue closure. In response to these comments, the company left replies that had me in shock. I must point out the screenshot included above, user Stephen4237 asks about refunds, and in return, the company said, "Is one show more important than continuing to support us in our time of need?"  

It's a clear fact, up and up-and-coming brands have huge hurdles to jump to gain success, and The North Warehouse has made innovative moves to do so. It's another clear fact that it is unavoidable for issues to arise and buyers to be upset with their experience. That being said, the sign of good marketing and longevity in a brand is the ability to take negative feedback in stride and make changes moving forward. With a refusal to offer any sort of compensation for price-gouged New Year tickets, and a pity party about their 'time of need' about a closure that came from a lack of concern for the safety of their buyers, I think the company will have to put in some hard work to remove this tarnish. All in all, this assignment taught me how vital online presence is! You are what you post, and the identity you create on social media can make or break your success in the long run (and don't play the victim when your customers are upset.) 

Thanks for reading, see you next week!