A few Saturday nights ago, I convinced my colleague DeLisa to head downtown with me and check out a Journey cover band called Voyage.  Since DeLisa and I both lived through the era of Journey’s omnipresence on the airwaves, I figured she’d be entertained watching my dear friend Robby (lead guitarist) and his bandmates roll out those nostalgic faves.

It was a great night: we drank beer, raised our hands in rawk salute, and sang ourselves hoarse alongside hundreds of other fans.  And back at the desk on Monday, I couldn’t help but connect the dots between our fun night out and what DeLisa and I do in our day jobs at MMC.

So here are a few things a great cover band reminded me of:

1) It can be cool – and credible – to be a copy.

My friend’s tribute band offers Journey fans the chance to hear the music they love performed live more frequently, in more intimate venues, at a more reasonable price than the original band.  They’re proudly selling one hell of an entertaining product to consumers who are interested in a high-quality copy.  That inspires me when I think about all the times clients look us to come up with communications plans for products that aren’t new, or first to market, or notably different from existing competitors.  Which leads me to my next point …

2) Context can be everything.

It’s not always the most revolutionary product that wins over hearts and minds – but it’s always the most relevant one.  And relevance is of course defined by our social networks.  If there were ten Journey tribute bands performing in Manhattan that night, none of those other 9 would have gotten my time or money – they weren’t relevant to me, my friends in the room, or my Facebook friends who followed along with my posts that night.  Every day, my teams and I are working on PR programs for our clients that produce exactly that kind of authentic relevance and word of mouth.

3) Be great at telling – not selling – the story.

I’ve seen a lot of concerts in my life, and I’m still blown away by one simple thing: a great set list.  The best live artists have mastered the art of arranging songs into a storytelling arc: they sing you through despair to hope, loss to love, sadness to sweet relief.  And that reminds me that storytelling is my favorite part of the PR discipline ~ I love watching people in action who know how to make that storytelling “journey” irresistible.