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  • Politics Is Like Hiring A Hitman
    by Scott Woods inPolitical on2020-08-13

    For me, politics is like hiring a hitman. I have values and things I care about. I care enough about them to at least bother voting for 5 minutes every year for one issue or another. And because I care at least that much, I vote for people who align with the ability to realize the things I care about.

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  • Punching Above Our Weight
    by Roger Madison Jr. inPolitical on2020-07-24

    I believe our vote is the punctuation of our voice. Without that resounding exclamation mark, I believe our voices are just incoherent noise.

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  • BLACK PROGRESS AMIDST SOCIAL CHAOS
    by Roger Madison Jr. inPolitical on2020-06-16

    Recent events have raised the profile of historical injustice and inequities here in the USA. The entire world has taken note of the fact that BLACK LIVES MATTER.   We invite all of our friends to engage in actions that result in the greatest movement for change in our history. It is imperative that we take advantage of this opportunity to affect a positive change by ACTING IN OUR SELF-INTERESTS.

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  • Living in a Black No-Man's Land
    by Roger Madison Jr. inOur Community on2019-10-28

    There are many narratives that define the Black experience in America in this 2nd decade of the 21st century. Our striving over the centuries of our sojourn in this nation is a tapestry of every human experience -- oppression, enslavement, forced assimilation, dehumanization, exclusion, segregation, isolation, struggle, perseverance, achievement, excellence, celebration, mourning, despair, progress, setbacks, lynching, assassination, genocide, terror, self-hatred, low esteem, pride,...

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  • Fighting Racism
    by Scott Woods inOur Community on2018-10-25

    I had a boss who was racist. Not an outright bigot, of course; her toolbox was more subtle than most. We bumped heads a lot over inconsequential things. She frequently couldn’t keep my name out her mouth. Lot of gaslighting. You know…2018 style. I tried a lot of ways to combat or navigate her issues. None of them worked, and that’s saying a lot because I’m really good at fighting racism. But at the end of the day – every day – she was my boss, I had to deal with her, and that was that. Finally I...

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Your Time to Shine with Publicity this Summer

During the summer months, you can always count on the media to do some type of weather-related stories. This could also be your opportunity to promote yourself and/or your business and generate some publicity.

Developing ideas that can help you promote your business in summer doesn't have to take a great deal of time or a large financial investment in order to see positive results. The key to getting the media's attention is to come up with a creative (and fun) campaign that will help them generate a news or weather-related story.

Here are some examples:

Offer cool down treats: Arrange a day with a local ice cream store to have a free ice cream giveaway for anyone who walks in with your business card. You would certainly need a budget for that-especially if you've circulated A LOT of business cards. But you could also limit it to the first 25 or 50 customers and let the media know you're doing this as a Summer Appreciation Event.

Another similar idea is to simply pack some ice cold drinks and take to employees who have to work outside for a living. It's a nice gesture and may not only give you some media exposure but also some additional business.

Host a Pool Party for kids: Contact the local weatherman and invite him to come over and offer some tips on how to stay cool this summer. Certainly, his or her own station will cover the event.

Product giveaways: When I was promoting my book, Whatever! A Baby Boomer's Journey Into Middle Age, I offered a fan as a part of the promotion. If you purchased a copy of the book, you also got a free "hot flash" fan. Find something creative you can give away that would be directly tied into summer.

Sponsor an activity or event in your community: Check with your local Chamber of Commerce, City Hall or your local church for community events and find out how you can get your name or business connected. It would be worth sitting out in the hot sun for a couple of hours if a TV or newspaper crew stopped by to interview you, wouldn't it?

Check the websites of your local stations: Find out what they're up to and see how you can get involved-if only as a volunteer. You can network your way from there.

If all else fails, create your OWN media event of you passing out cold drinks to construction workers and others who work outdoors. Then post it on YouTube, Vimeo, UStream, etc. You may find yourself getting even GREATER exposure.

What ideas can you come up with?