I am named after both of my Grandfathers – My father’s father David and Edwin, my mother’s father. I am very proud of my heritage. My father’s father, who actually went by his middle name Carl, owned Bowman Hardware in Marshall, North Carolina. I knew him as Papa Carl, and loved going to Marshall a few times a year to visit him. Though he is no longer around, the store is still there, and still …read more
What’s Next in Marketing?
March 27, 2008 By Leave a Comment
Check out this great slide show from Paul Isakson on the Future of Marketing and Advertising. In this series of slides, Paul captures the essence of where I believe marketing is headed. It is about listening, using insight to solve problems, and finding ways to create the remarkable. The hard part is not in identifying what to do, but is in actually doing it. I also love the use of the web based tool SlideShare …read more
The March Madness Myth
March 27, 2008 By Leave a Comment
I recently read in the Dayton Business Journal that according to a recent study conducted by a Chicago based consulting firm, March Madness costs companies$1.7 Billion. Really? Does anyone really believe this to be the case. I don’t. I suppose if we all still worked on assembly lines, and then spent the day mindlessly consuming basketball instead of building widgets, this would perhaps be accurate. However, the assumption that we are still a mindless drones …read more
Are You Aware? Take the Test
March 26, 2008 By 2 Comments
I always thought that I had a decent sense of awareness. That is, until I got this awareness test video from my brother in law, Geoff – an avid cyclist. If you have not seen this, please watch this short video clip where you are asked to count the number of passes made by the basketball team in white uniforms. See how well you do. Geoff, for your sake I hope the people in South …read more
PancakesPancakes, SuccessSuccess, ThanksThanks
March 25, 2008 By 2 Comments
Last Saturday, March 22nd, the Epilepsy Foundation of Western Ohio put on a pancake breakfast fund raising event. It was a huge success. I was very moved by the outpouring of support I received from family, friends, and colleagues who attended, donated, and supported this. Over 170 people sacrificed their free time and hard earned money to come to F&S Harley Davidson in Dayton on a Saturday morning to eat pancakes and support the Epilepsy …read more
Voices Episode 3 – Rod Sommer
March 25, 2008 By Leave a Comment
One of the sharpest practitioners of marketing I know is Rod Sommer, a partner with LJB Inc – an architectural, engineering, consulting firm headquartered in Dayton, Ohio. Rod has a no nonsense approach to marketing. He defines his philosophy as attraction based marketing. He combines an open mind about technology and its potential with a critical eye on the goal of facilitating growth through person to person contact. Rod believes that while the tools have …read more
Productivity, Commuting, and Cincinnati Metro
March 18, 2008 By 1 Comment
Why would I ride the bus? Why would anyone with a working automobile choose to ride the bus for that matter. The automobile offers freedom, flexibility, and autonomy – not to mention music, news, heat, and comfort. Public transit authorities have tried “save the air” as a marketing message, but that is too big a problem to sufficiently motivate most of us. It is just too tough to see an immediate impact – which is …read more
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