4. February 2012 by Frank Goad.

The previous installment covered content, scripting, talent (who’s on camera) and length. This time, it’s about one thing … well three things in one, actually: Content – what is important in your script? Sounds easy, but it’s far from it. Please read on.I’ve been in communications for over thirty years and, to me, it boils down to three things that your audience needs to accept your message and consider you as a good source for video. They are: Confidence, Trust and Engagement.

Do you think confidence and trust are the same. Sorry, but they’re not. Confidence is about them believing you know what you’re talking about. Can they believe what you say? Does it sound like bull or the real thing? To build confidence, humbly let them know what your background is. Notice I’ve already mentioned how long I’ve been doing this, and you probably thought – even if not consciously – “Well, if he’s done it that long, he’s got to know something.” (“I do,” he said blushingly.) Notice that I didn’t say, “I’m an expert with … ,” because words like expert, guru, master, etc., are titles that others give you. I routinely go through my social media accounts and delete anyone who says they are a “guru” or “master” because they never are. Let your experience do the talking.

What can you say to prove you know what you’re talking about? Can people see other things you’ve done? Do you have a good place where they can find them, like a blog or a Flickr account or a website? Just as employers want to see your résumé, people want to see your work. Seeing what you’ve done lets them make up their mind if they want to listen to you and believe you. It’s okay to put your experience out there, just be thorough, accurate, honest and a bit humble. If you’re just getting started, well, everyone has to start somewhere and now is your time.

Trust is something that builds after they get confidence in you. What good is it to have confidence in your ability to bring information regularly, but not trust everything you say? Trust means coming to you as a prime source of information delivered in a way that let’s them use it, and so that they can also share it with friends – people rarely share things they don’t trust. For instance, a phrase you don’t hear: “Check this pistol. It’s pretty flaky so don’t get mad because it will probably shoot your finger off.” Confidence brings them to you (well, that and curiosity or a referral) and trust keeps them there.

Your audience must trust your work to be accurate and fair in what you say. Sure, you can go with bombast and incendiary topics, but audiences who respond to that are, generally speaking, fickle and fade quickly. You want a dependable, long-lasting audience.

Next is engagement. How are you going to talk with them? What can you say to engage them in a conversation? It might be one sided, but what do you have that will hold their interest? Do you have info that they can’t do without, or that you format in a way that gives lots of direction to the best sources? How is your delivery? Are you engaging on camera? Have you studied the techniques of television personalities you like?

A caution: Be honest with yourself and find someone who looks and sounds a bit like you. If you look like Jonah Hill, Bobby Hill, Eric Cartman, the dancing creepy old guy on the Six Flags ads, Tommy Lee Jones or Jack Black, don’t emulate Matt Damon, Bruce Willis or George Clooney. Sure, take hints from their delivery, but be who you are just like all the ones in the first group. Use it to your advantage – poke a little fun at yourself and go with what you have. You are the most engaging person once you get a rhythm and learn a bit about delivering lines on-camera.

Get feedback from friends (careful asking family as their boundaries can be a bit far out) and watch yourself on the screen as objectively as you can. It’s tough to get a natural delivery and only a few have a totally believable delivery (they’re called stars – see the names mentioned above), so accept that you’re an amateur and have fun with it. If you take yourself too seriously, your audience won’t take you seriously at all. It takes time and practice so, keep at it and have fun.

Think of it this way: There are lots of grocery stores and restaurants, but we usually have a favorite. We drive past others to get there and do so gladly. Your audience will listen to you for reasons you might never know, but they’re there. The size of your audience is less important than their loyalty, and your consistently good work will keep them coming back.

As to your scripts, use small words and active phrases. Avoid the words will, should, could, might, etc., and use active words like is, does, has, goes, etc. “He might have a chance if the playoffs go well,” vs. “He has a chance with good playoff performance.” Which is more engaging and exciting – yea, the second one. Make statements, but make ones you can stand behind.

That’s it for today boys and girls. Here’s another one of mine that was well received. Cheers!

Who Defines Your Brand? From Business Lexington’s “Smiley Pete TV” channel on YouTube.

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3. February 2012 by Frank Goad.

That title sounds oh, so very scintillating, doesn’t it? It comes under the heading of, “Made you look.” What is the secret? You don’t have to be Hemmingway or Ayn Rand to be a good blogger. Surprise!! The most unlikely folks have created popular blogs that have enhanced their career and expanded their world.

The secret to blogging is to: A. Go with your strengths, and; B. Write only as much as it takes. One of the things that making a living entails for me is writing, and it comes naturally. I love to play with words, ideas, a clever turn of phrase, but, to many, that’s like walking with glass shards in their shoes.

I had a manager at Lexmark by the name of Ellen Fernandez. She was a great manager: Smart, organized, able to grasp goals and make things happen. Best of all, she is a wonderful person who believes that everyone has greatness in them and working for her was a joy. One day she said, “I’m betting I could lock you in a room with instructions to write all day, and you’d be very happy.” I agreed. She said, “That would be a day of torture for me. Ask me to spend the day analyzing spreadsheets and I’d love it. I see patterns in the numbers and trends many people miss.” Nevertheless, she was a good writer and her memos were clean, to the point and well structured.

My point is, you don’t have to create a masterpiece to share quality information. Writing is like anything else: The more you do it, the more proficient you become. You exercise the language part of the brain and it gets stronger. As the saying goes, “Begun is half done.”

If you believe you are good at what you do, and it’s something you like, then share your knowledge. Someone might live a better life after learning something you shared in a blog. Don’t worry if it’s blue ribbon prose because, if your information is accurate and understandable, people will be very forgiving. Be as brief as possible, use pictures and illustrations if you have them and, if grammar is a problem, get some help. There are plenty of services online that will critique your blog and help you eliminate any errors.

Besides sharing information, blogs also help you build a body of work that can become a reference for you and others. As time goes by, you’ll see a pattern develop and it can help you think more deeply about your career and profession. So, now the secret is out, and you have something new to share.

Please subscribe to this blog - it’s easy. Scroll down the left side of the page, at the bottom of the lists, there’s a box titled, “Meta.” Click where it says, “Entries,” and it’ll open a window to choose how you want to receive notices (email, etc.). Thanks!!!!!

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Oh, yes, there are my other pages on LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+ and Quora. There are more, but that’s enough.

Also, there are videos on my YouTube channel, Franky Gee Lex, or at Business Lexington’s Channel, Smiley Pete TV, where I’ve got about 35 or so videos, many with folks I’ve interviewed.

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18. August 2011 by Frank Goad.

My wife, Deborah, and I went back to Bella Notte tonight mostly because, as I’ve said before, you always get a great meal there plus great service, and also to see what sort of reaction there was to my posts after the last visit. This was by no means a test, but it would tell me several things. What did I find out … I mean besides the fact that the food and service were excellent as always?

I saw that they get the whole service thing in ways many business owners haven’t begun to fathom. Not only did let the entire staff know what was said the next day after they hit the Internet, they also thanked me tonight for the posts - servers and manager alike. This is important for several reasons, including:

A. It shows they communicate with their staff … a lot
B. They are watching the Web for comments being made about them and using them as a tool
C. They have a very good grasp of the power of Web 2.0 (or 2.5 or whatever someone decides we’re up to)
D. They are integrating this smart marketing into their daily customer relations

There are many other reasons why this is important, but none more so than letting a customer know that you really care about their thoughts, feelings and satisfaction time and time again. Who checks on this? Mr. Toyoda himself.

Kuni Toyoda, the founder of Bella Notte, Fazoli’s and Smashing Tomato, is a smart marketer and, by all accounts, a good man. He and his wife eat at their restaurants almost every night. This is more than “eating one’s own cooking” (to quoin a phrase), it’s leadership. This shows his staff that he cares and pays attention to what they’re doing and what the customer reactions to his product and service are.

So, again, if you want a great meal and a really good lesson in customer service, tool on over to Bella Notte. Tell’em I sent you, but don’t expect anything for that - special treatment is standard whether my name is mentioned or not.

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3. August 2011 by Frank Goad.

My family and I went to Bella Notte here in Lexington for dinner tonight. It’s long been one of our favorites for two reasons: A. The food is excellent, well-presented and served in a unique yet warm and friendly atmosphere; B. We’ve never, ever had bad service, and almost always have excellent service. Tonight was yet another delightful experience. (Thank you, John-Michael.)

If you’ve read much of my writing, you’ll know that one of my favorite definitions of a brand is, “The promise of continuing delightful experiences based on a history of delightful experiences.” While others might have stories of a less-than-positive experience at Bella Notte (I’ve never heard one, mind you), you’ll not hear any from us … and that’s why going there is always a treat.

The prices are, IMHO, very reasonable based on the service, quality and ambiance. Can I eat there often? Not as often as I’d like, and that’s probably a good thing: When you indulge in a “treat” too often, it becomes pedestrian and loses those things that make it special. (Bella’s might be an exception to that.)

Earlier today, I ate lunch with a friend at a competitor’s a stone’s throw from Bella’s. The manager was walking briskly down the aisle by our table, stopped abruptly and, with her body still pointed down the aisle, looked over her shoulder and, while we were talking, blurted out, “Everything all right?” “Yes.” “Good.” Zoom, off she goes. My thought was that saying four words to us allowed her to check off another to-do in her mind. Genuine concern? Maybe so but, when someone is talking to you and sincerely wants to know what you think, they generally turn their body to you, pause and ask a question. Stopping so fast your shoes almost squeak, interrupting a customer and keeping your body perpendicular to the table says to me that my business might be appreciated … or not.

Tonight, the Bella Notte manager came by our table and, rather than making a cursory stop on his way to someplace else, he politely walked up to the table, waited until there was a pause in our  conversation, and asked how our meal was. He then asked my wife how her drink was, my daughter how her meal was and if I was happy with my penne pasta. Then he actually had a conversation with us and it was obvious he was sensitive to overstaying his welcome. He was genuinely concerned and pleasant.

Our server spent time talking with us asking what we like and made suggestions based on that information. He didn’t just run down the specials - he wanted to know what we like before making suggestions and didn’t mention the special until the end. He observed the table from a distance before offering water, asking questions, etc. Again, our dining pleasure was more important than the number of customers he was serving.

So, it doesn’t matter what business you are in, this is yet another little bit of proof that what I tell all my clients is true: Everything matters - everything. The demeanor of the manager and our server is part of the restaurant’s brand to me and always has been. I posted a picture of our dessert on Facebook (it was scrumptious and beautiful), posted on FourSquare with kudos to our server, and now I’m blogging about it because a first-hand experience is the most valuable teaching tool of all (unless it leads to injury or death).

So, are your customers doing any of this for you? If not, maybe a meal at Bella Notte would be a good refresher. Ask for John-Michael, but don’t ask him to sing.

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13. June 2011 by Frank Goad.

 Time and again, clients ask me, “What should I do?” While many think I’m being a smarta**, my response is, “What do you think you should do?” 

This isn’t a flippant answer but, instead, a serious question. Most people know more about what to do than they think and, like many things, need some training. Moreover, they need to learn how to think about what they communicate to their customers. Part of my job is helping people hone in on what their customers hear from them that keeps them coming back. Businesses often have a very hard time answering that question because they’ve been doing what comes naturally and not analyzing what those things are.

You talk to customers all the time and have a good idea what they want, like, need and, conversely, don’t want, like or need. Time has taught you to largely think like them and tailor your business in order to cater to them. You work hard to “walk in their shoes” and anticipate their next desire. You develop a relationship with them and use what you learned from them with the next new customers. 

On the other hand, learning how to create a motivating advertising or marketing campaign, write ad or brochure copy in a way that speaks directly to them, or even see through their eyes takes time; often a long time. The truth is, some folks never learn, and that doesn’t make them any less of a business person, it simply means that it’s not their strength. As we all know, dealing with someone one-on-one is totally different than trying to persuade people you can’t talk with personally through ads, brochures and so on.

It’s like my mechanic - he doesn’t want to do ads anymore than I want to do his job all the time. He’s an excellent mechanic and has spent decades learning the tricks of the trade. His experience lets him solve mechanical problems in a heartbeat, whereas I’d spend a lot of time researching the problem. On the other hand, he named me “Old Golden Tongue” and calls me when he has to write an important letter or put an ad somewhere. “I understand cars,” he says, “but people are a bit harder for me.” 

My point is, you know your business and I know mine (which is communications, advertising and marketing). As a another good friend of mine says - who, by the way, is an awesome accountant but a really lousy writer - “We’re all smart, just in different ways, and the trick is to find someone who’s smart in ways that make you look better.” Give me a call and let’s see if I can help you.

Frank Goad, Pres.
Frank Communications Lexington
For information, email: fcl.info@frankcomlex.com
www.frankcomlex.com
859-335-8742  

Posted in creativity, Frank Communications, Frank Goad, FrankyGee3, writing, building business, Advertising, Frank, The Long Tail, relationships, Marketing | Print | No Comments »

1. June 2011 by Frank Goad.

Your Website And Smart “Spiders”

Not too long ago, to keep your search engine rankings for your website up there, you merely had to put some content up and add a few links or a video. Not so much anymore because the spiders have been getting smarter with every passing month.

First, let’s assume you don’t know what a spider (or bot) is in search engine terms. Google, Yahoo, Bing (Microsoft) and all other search engines send out little programs that, in effect, roam the web and “crawl” over every single website they can find all over the world, and then send info on what they find back “home.” How many web pages is that?

Hold on to your hat: Google has indexed over 40 Billion web pages (not sites, but all website pages). Your site is in there, too. Google will re-index all those pages every 30-90 days, too, so, yes, you are being watched … sort of. How do they do it?

First, Google has over 1,000,000 servers! Mind boggling, and they can find anything on them almost instantly so that you can have it when you do a search. Millions of spiders are coursing over pages and sending a constant stream of info back to the servers where every jot and tittle is cataloged and made ready for search.

As if this wasn’t enough, the spiders are getting smarter every day. One of the things they “measure” is relevancy, which is based on (among other things): The sources you quote; whether it looks, sounds or “smells” like another article (meaning it might be nothing more than a copy); how reliable your sources are (popular? oft quoted?), and; how many sources you have used. Bewildered? Discouraged?

Well, don’t be. It simply means that, when you put articles and content up there, you write shorter pieces on which you do more synthesis. Having longer articles isn’t always better because the spiders are looking “into” your pieces and judging the relevancy and originality. Step up your creativity a bit, cast a bit wider net for sources and you might wind up better than before.

Posted in search engines, search, Frank Communications, Frank Goad, FrankyGee3, writing, Branding, convent, Advertising, Frank, The Long Tail, building business, Marketing | Print | No Comments »

10. May 2011 by Frank Goad.

I’m writing out of guilt. You see, I advise all my clients to blog for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is that websites with blogs get as much as sixty-per-cent more hits. So, if I’m going to harp on them to do it, I must practice what I preach.

I don’t know about you, but I can usually find something to write about even if it is - paraphrasing Jerry Seinfeld’s description of his series - “A (blog) about nothing.”  On the other hand, it proves that the creative process comes about sometimes simply because you engage in it.

Speaking of creativity, do me a favor: Never, ever say to me that you’re not creative. The problem is that the word itself has been equated with art, and art has nothing to do with it. The definition of creativity (mine, really) is that: A.  You are being creative if you take two or more things and combine them in a way that you believe has never been done to accomplish a goal, or; B. You are solving a problem in a way that is novel to you.

The important thing is that you’re doing something you’ve never done before, or doing things in a way you’ve not done them. Just because someone else might have thought of the same answer/solution/combination/etc. before you does not negate your own creativity. If you didn’t know about it before doing it, that counts.

Art is only one of many avenues of creativity. I know some damned creative accountants and a few carpenters that can create masterpieces from scrap lumber. I’ve met farmers whose creativity kept them from bankruptcy while all those around them found their spread up for auction. I’ve known moms whose sheer industrial-strength creativity kept their family together, fed, clothed and housed.

I grew up in the country down on the Kentucky-Tennessee border in a farming and logging town of 3,500 people. Many of those folks lived in tiny houses or tar paper shacks out on some gravel road miles from town. They were often the most creative folks I knew. They eked out an honorable living with barely a penny to their name and held their heads high.

My family was middle-class and, if something broke or wore out, we paid someone to fix it, or we bought a replacement. They had to find a way to mend it or build another from whatever they could find because paying someone or buying another was often simply out of the question. Many had barely a sixth-grade education, but had a practical knowledge that was a Ph.D. in life. As they say, “A country boy will survive.”

Creative? Of course you are. You just have to believe it.

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21. March 2011 by Frank Goad.

After an arduous week of setting up camp, I am proud to announce that Frank Communications Lexington is in its new home. We’re at 80 Codell Drive, Suite 220B, Lexington, 40509. Even better, I have two new folks on staff: Anne Deck and Dennis Hutchinson. Each brings a unique skill set and range of experience that will complement what we’re already doing for our clients. Business is good for us and the help is most welcome.Thinking that the move-in would take me three days at most, it was quite an eye-opener to find that it took me all week. I’ve assembled more furniture than some folks who work in office supply places. Still, it’s a great space.The “Big Room” is a 12′x24” space that will serve as conference room, workshop area, photography studio and video production stage. All the furniture either rolls, stacks or folds so that the room will quickly reconfigure to whatever space is needed. All this is to serve you better and more efficiently. Feel free to stop by and visit. We’d love to see you.

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21. January 2011 by Frank Goad.

While talking with a client recently, he was bemoaning the diminished traffic during the winter snows. When asked what he did with the down time, he replied, “Oh, you know, the usual. I cleaned, organized and took care of some loose ends.” When asked if he couldn’t have an employee do that, he said, “Well, I suppose, but I know exactly how i want things.”

This is a perfect example of working in the business, not on it. We talked about how he might have made that time more profitable and here’s part of the list:

• Call customers and say, “Thanks for your business - what can I do for you?”
• Look over his Facebook page and add posts to it
• Look over his Facebook page’s friends and see what they’re talking about; knowing that can help you know what they’re likely to want or need so that you can advertise to their comments
• Look for local happenings on the different calendars and see if there’s an event that would offer people and a theme that resonates with his business
• Call his vendors and see if they have any marketing ideas or have any examples of some other customer’s promotions

As you can see, the list is as long as your imagination. If you have employees, let them do the busy work. It’s easy to fall into doing menial tasks when you’re stressed because, as Dennis Waitley says, “They are tension relieving, not goal achieving.”

So, don’t fret the snow. Use that time to build customer relationships and boost your business.

Posted in creativity, Frank Communications, Frank Goad, FrankyGee3, retail, writing, Frank, Public relations, business, building business, Marketing | Print | No Comments »

16. January 2011 by Frank Goad.

When it comes to clients, I deal with several kinds. Some of the titles are listed below are admittedly my own creations. The list goes from successful to not-s0-successful folks. Maybe you’ll spot yourself in this list:

• Free thinkers - Full of off-the-wall ideas and creative approaches, but not always practical or affordable
• Trendsetters - These are the folks out on the bleeding edge, often the ones who start a local trend; think Malcolm Gladwell’s “influencers”
• Early adopters - Maybe not the first in line, but not far back
• Practicalistics - Folks who take a practical, well-reasoned approach; willing to try new things, but need assurances that it stands a good chance of success
• Willing conservatives - They’ll listen to ideas, but would rather stay near the mainstream
• Long-rangers - These folks are some of the best to work with, and most challenging, because they take a longer view than most and want things worked out to the “nth” degree
• Glamorettes - See advertising primarily in terms of publicity, not persuasion (like to appear in their ads), and let that guide their judgment of plans and ideas (and, yes, there are better ways to approach it); remember, this ain’t Hollywood
• Hyper-hypers - They want to make a big splash with lots of hype and bombast, which doesn’t hold up over the long term; these guys have a sub-group called Megaphoners, who make lots of noise that simply annoys
• Hoppers -These folks hop back and forth between spend-don’t spend, run it-no wait, and so on; the deep and abiding value of consistency seems lost on them
• Scaredy Cats - Their thinking is almost totally governed by fear despite the probable return on their investment; sometimes cheat themselves by being fearful of losing a dollar, or often guilty of short-range thinking and shorter-range plans which, in marketing and advertising, are almost always self-defeating
• Zombies - Despite the fact that in the last five years everything has changed about advertising, marketing, communication and personal technology, they keep doing the same old thing, and often because, “That’s the way we’ve always done it,” which is the worst reason; also wonder why their business is near dead, too, and sucking the life out of them

Of these two, Scaredy Cat and Zombies are the most pitiful because they let fear (of change, adversity, the unknown, etc.) rule their thinking. Everyone knows that the Internet and mobile devices have not only changed marketing and advertising, but society and culture, too. Every year new devices arrive and add another huge wrinkle in how things work and you can adapt or be lostl

Go back to when fax machines became de rigueur in every office and sped communications and business transactions to new levels. You were considered regressive if you didn’t have one, and yet, people resisted. The same attitude exists today and is often exhibited when people say, “Oh, it’s just a fad,” or, “This is a business and Facebook is for play.”

Another example: Despite the overwhelming evidence that blogs are a boon to a business, some companies still won’t allow them because they are terrified of bad publicity. If you get a little bad publicity, so what? Bad publicity can turn out good for you and your business if you handle it well. In the end, if you’re running your business ethically and professionally, you have nothing to fear. Beyond that, how bad can something in your company be, scardey cat? Unless you’re charging for funerals and not burying the bodies, you’re probably pretty safe.

I had lunch with an insurance agent friend who’s trying hard to bring his company a bit closer to the 21st century. While he has a manager on his side, he has two “really old school” guys who can’t imagine what Facebook and Twitter can do for their business - zombies. He even had to get clearance to have a personal Facebook page. The shame of it is that they’re cheating the company out of revenues and him out of commissions.

Open your mind and look around.There are more and better ways to connect with customers than ever.

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22. December 2010 by Frank Goad.

A CHRISTMAS PLEA: If you’re considering getting a pet for someone this Christmas, please, please, PLEASE consider adopting from a humane society. There are thousands upon thousands of loving pets waiting for homes. I can tell you from long experience that adopted dogs and cats understand how lucky they are - they are simply more loyal and loving.

The dog you see pictured here is another of our rescues and she is one of the best friends I’ve ever had. I’ve owned dogs all my life and, without a doubt, strays and adoptions from the “pound” have always been the best. Dogs have an intelligence that is different from ours, but their love is just the same. They show joy, grief, humor and a whole spectrum of other emotions. Like us, they want to belong and, after being rescued from being lost and alone, they understand the difference and appreciate being taken in.

You might say that I’m anthropomorphizing animals or projecting human values onto a “dumb animal,” but I can assure you that what I say is real and true. If you don’t know, then you’ve not allowed yourself the joy of having a companion who provides unconditional love regardless of your mood or actions; a companion whose loving and giving nature includes more forgiveness than we as humans can ever muster.

Here’s a benefit of a “mutt” that many don’t consider: Mixed breeds are quite often smarter because their bloodlines are broader. Yes, I’ve owned purebreds, too, and they were never as smart as my mixed breeds. Too many breeders stay within a bloodline and, as anyone who’s had high school biology can tell you, that’s inbreeding and that often leads to mental retardation, physical problems and even bad dispositions. My mutts are hardier and much easier to live with.

So, help out a furry friend and adopt from a Humane Society.

Posted in Adoption, Frank Communications, Frank Goad, FrankyGee3, Humane society, Animals, Frank, writing, Friends, general | Print | No Comments »

14. December 2010 by Frank Goad.

 For anyone who says Facebook is evil, or that LinkedIn is nothing but a time-suck, you might want to think again. “Trend spotter” Marian Salzman, in her latest work, “11 Trends for 2011,” points out something about social media you might want to consider when making your advertising and marketing plans for next year.

“People around the world are losing faith. Many Americans, for example, have lost trust in their politicians, their institutions, heir media and the direction of the nation. To compensate because they haven’t lost trust in self-reliance and faith in echnology), they are looking to their networks, turbocharged by omputers and the Internet.The Network Effect is making good n its promise. …

“With almost 2 billion Internet users worldwide (including 239 million in the U.S., 51 million in the U.K., 45 million in France, 81 million in India and a whopping 420 million in China), there’s a virtually unlimited supply of people out there who can meet anyone’s networking needs—whether it’s old friends, new buddies, lovers, advocates, employers, partners, suppliers, fellow enthusiasts, fellow sufferers, co-religionists or people to just
hang out with. There’s a new sense of unlimited possible partners for anything from recovery to marriage.

“As world citizens continue to embrace social media—from Facebook,Twitter and LinkedIn to Orkut, QQ and Copains ’avant—they are realizing that keyboards and mobile devices can also facilitate real conversations and mediate real human connections. (Although, in a related aside, we’ve been witnessing an interesting decline in people’s personas on social media— from an authentic expression of self to a measured, calculated
projection of values—with attendant societal implications both online and off.*) The more niche the passion, the more social the match experience. And as time goes by, the interactions will build into rich, detailed connections and an ongoing sense of ambient awareness—true connectedness to a wider network of
people. ”

*I believe it’s because people are smarter and realize that, once you post something online, it’s there forever, like it or not.

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6. December 2010 by Frank Goad.

While my wife and daughter were out of town this weekend, I “treated” myself to something seldom enjoyed: My own, personal “Band of Brothers” marathon. I spent Saturday watching all the disks, looking over the timelines (real history, not just the character’s time) and thinking about what those men went through.The story follows the men of the 101st Airborne, Company E, or “Easy Company.” Each company gets a designation from the phonetic alphabet. They were Easy, and there was Dog, Able, etc. – you get the idea. I’m explaining this so that Easy Company doesn’t get confused with an escort service (sorry, but this is important).

These men went through some of the worst experiences of WWII – literally, hell on earth. They were bombed, shot, burned and suffered exhaustion, freezing cold, hunger and mental trials beyond comprehension. There seem to be no words to adequately describe what they experienced. Still, they persevered largely because of the men leading them. Major Dick Winters is a first-class hero, yet remains humble about his role; Sergeant Carwood Lipton is another cut from that same cloth, and there were many others whose valor and compassion remain unmatched today.

Granted, not all soldiers made it through in that fashion. There were the weak, those who are predisposed to bad behavior or simply lacked character. There were officers who, once in the middle of pitched battles, cracked and became a liability. That happens in civilian life, too, and we all see it sometimes.

Even though their battles were over sixty years ago, their perseverance, courage and devotion stand today as models we should all emulate. There are countless stories like theirs throughout history and some are being written as I write this in battles a world away. The cloud that settled over us after Viet Nam distorted our view of what it means to be valiant and for many years robbed us of the realization that we owe much to our soldiers. To be clear, I did not serve, but know I would be a better man today if I had.

As a man, there are certain things many of us men are somewhat programmed to do. (Rather than start a fight over genetics, anthropology and so on, let me say this is my opinion and, if you don’t like it, keep it to yourself.) Men are meant to serve, and some to lead, but the best know the role of servant leader. Throughout history we men have fought, built, carried, dug and performed much (most?) of the heavy lifting required to carve a new or better life from whatever we are going through. That is our job, our lot and ours is to do so willingly and to the best of our ability.

On the other hand, I see our Congress and much of our government and it seems honor and service are words that have been erased from the majority. I see all around evidence that character and compassion do not carry the value they did. Even men leaving Congress or our state legislatures say that, compared to twenty or even ten years ago, the tone of those bodies is much darker and more about party politics than serving the public; more about winning personally that claiming a real victory for their constituents. They see winning for themselves or the party as the ultimate goal, rather than negotiating a better life for their constituents.

So, where are today’s heroes? Who can step forward and lead? I think we love our soldiers so much because they have a simple yet difficult task to do, and that is fight for a just cause. They demonstrate all the traits we value in human kind and do so selflessly knowing that the cause for which they fight could well take their life. They sacrifice daily for a salary that no elected official would consider worthy. Our police and firemen likewise go forth knowing that each morning they put on their uniform, it could be their last.

Wall Street showed us serious greed and cost the average person thousands of dollars - no honor there. The banking industry showed how slovenly a sector can be by foreclosing improperly on thousands of mortgages - workers scared to do right, managers scared to buck the higher-ups and the higher-ups scared of losing their bonuses. Time after time we hear of scandals; from Bill Clinton to “Dubya” to Charles Rangel to John Edwards to Larry Craig and on and on and on. It seems no one who is supposed to lead these days has the conviction or spine to do so in a manner that inspires the populace. What’s worse, some of those that are supposed to be on the “right” in many cases are sounding like the right wing German party that started around 1921 called the National Socialists, or Nazis. When you consider what I heard some people saying on the radio about gays recently (the debate over “Don’t ask, don’t tell” and the military survey), it was reminiscent of what the old newsreels sounded like; what’s being said about Jews, Muslims and others from the Middle East is no better.

So what am I saying? Look around at those in government whom you elected to office ask if you think you’re getting your money’s worth. Are their actions such that you’d point it out to your children in hopes they’d be inspired? The last post here was praising Chief Bastin, and he is an exemplary man dedicated to bringing the best out in his men and running the department in the most efficient manner possible while building confidence in Lexington’s citizens. He is indeed rare.

Look at the companies you buy from - are they good corporate citizens? What can YOU do to demonstrate character? If we don’t start valuing honor, character, honesty, square-dealing and courage again, Nikita Kruschev’s prophecy of many years ago will come true: “I once said, ‘We will bury you,’ and I got into trouble with it. Of course we will not bury you with a shovel. Your own working class will bury you.”  The choice is ours.

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23. November 2010 by Frank Goad.

I get an email in my box from time to time telling me that I have a new subscriber. Some of them are legit, but some have names like “free annual credit report.” So, do me a favor: If you’re a subscriber, comment on this post and tell me why you subscribed. What do you want to see? What have you read that you liked? Even the bogus ones of you out there, let me know how you found this blog. Were you simply scraping for emails?

It’s really a small thing that I ask because my career is based on the ability to communicate ideas from one source to an audience. If you asked why I do it, I suppose I’d have to say that I’m a hopeless do-gooder who thinks that enriching other’s lives is important. I do that by spreading (ostensibly) useful info.

So, if anything I’ve written has been helpful or interesting in any way no matter how small, let me hear from you.

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19. August 2010 by Frank Goad.

A friend of mine admitted today that he needs help with his advertising copy. It took courage to admit that. The sad thing is, there are so many people who won’t admit it (or their ego says that they’re good), and then they wonder why their ad doesn’t “pull” or their brochures are met with jaw-breaking yawns. I’m amazed at how many people are convinced that they can write good ad copy despite having no experience or training. Getting A’s in college English is not a good measure of your ability nor is having a neighbor say, “Wow, you oughta be a writer.”

For instance (and I’ve seen similar examples dozens of times), someone writes, “and best of all, it’s free!” If being free (or low cost or inexpensive or … ) is the best thing about your product, then you don’t have much to offer. The sentence degrades the product or service and psychologically pushes them away from you.

A local direct mail piece came to me the other day with this sentence:”You will have more enjoyment from this (product) than you will expect to have!” That is one of the weakest sentences ever written, besides being a mish-mash. Despite sounding like the text on many foreign websites, it was sent by a Lexington company. That’s an extreme example, but lesser offenses push people away from you, too.

Local P.R. guru Douglas Alexander and I have often discussed the differences in our writing styles. We have somewhat settled on this difference (and this is not hard and fast): P.R. is more reactive in nature and marketing is more proactive. He often writes in response to something (like a pending piece of legislation), and I often write to cause something (like getting someone to be my client’s customer). My writing often carries more “force” because it has a CTA (call to action) that is designed to compel the reader to do something.

Neither is better than the other and our discussions center on why one style fits a situation better than another. We have different roles and have shaped our writing skills over decades of experience to adopt the best tone and style based on the target audience, publication it’s published in and the product/service/issue/etc.

If you need a video, you don’t hire the neighbor’s fourteen-year-old son … well, I hope you don’t. Likewise, if you want to tell the world why they should come see you, get someone who knows best how to do that. So, unless you write for publication or advertising for outside interests, get some help. Whether you hire me or someone else, work with a professional writer.

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