Greetings from the Rotary District 7600 Conference in Norfolk, or as locals and people from Boston call it, Nahhfik. Even though Rotarians here are discussing projects in Virginia, we have a keen eye on “Making a Difference” in the world.
So here’s a worldly perspective. There are 7.4 billion people in the world, and there are 7.2 billion cell phones. The population of mobile phones in the U.S. exceeds our population. Think about that for a moment.
Do you remember the One Laptop Per Child project? MIT Professor Nicolas Negropontehad an idea to provide cheap laptops to kids and bring access to the web throughout the developing world. It was a cool idea — especially the hand-crank battery — but it never really got off the ground. Why? Many people have discussed this over the years, but my reason was simple: the $99 laptop for kids was usurped by the $19 cell phone.
Mobile is global, and mobile is everywhere. Today, almost everyone has their face buried in a smartphone. Morning, noon, and night, we check the weather, text friends, take selfies (some more than others… yes, I’m talking about you, Sophie), email colleagues, play games, post on social media, or check in to the coffee shop. Mobile phones have commanded our attention to a greater degree than any technology that has come before; from the telephone to radio, and TV to the WWW.
Technologies may come and go, but marketing principles remain relatively simple: put marketing messages on platforms that people are paying attention to. And what is more attention-grabbing than that iPhone in your pocket?
Is your company marketing to people through mobile? No? May I ask, why not? As always, your thoughts are welcome.
Monday, September 18 – Molly Monday
On Monday, I had the pleasure of meeting with Liza Miller, a recent JMU grad with a Communications major and an Education minor. I gave Liza some ideas on ways to connect to folks in our BA, since networking is a great way to get a job. So is online networking, so help Miss Liza out and connect with her on LinkedIn. Tell her “Dave sent me.”
Monday was Molly Whitfield‘s 10th anniversary with the company. Simply put, the majority of our success through the years has been due to this amazing friend and colleague. The next time you get an email from Molly, you may notice that there are three letters after her name – C.O.O. Congratulate Molly on becoming Chief Operating Officer at Madison+Main.
Tuesday, September 19 – Time Flies
It’s hard to believe but we have now been working with Marketplace Events for more than one year. The Ohio-based producer of the Richmond Home Show and the Richmond Home + Garden Show is North America’s largest producer of consumer home shows. These guys have been great to work with over the last year and I found out on our call Tuesday that Marketing Director Shelley Gephart is a big fan of the Weekly Report. So I thought I’d give her a shout out. #ThanksShelley #YouRock #INowHave2Fans
Wednesday, September 20 – We Love Morton’s
On Tuesday, we signed Green Top Hunt & Fish as a client. On Wednesday, we began working on PR for their 70th anniversary and Outdoor Expo. On Thursday, there was an article on the front page of the Business section of the Richmond Times-Dispatch. First, we are THRILLED to be working with the fine folks at Green Top. Secondly, Communications Manager Kent Brockwell is a master of media… well done, Mr. Brockwell.
We held our September Media Mixer at the newly renovated Morton’s on Virginia Street. Wednesday night. Despite I-64 being blocked in both directions on the Shockoe Valley Bridge and the bottom flooding with 20,000 commuters, we had a very nice turnout for the event. Longtime friend Kittygayle McMoon won a $50 visa gift card and our friend Kerri O’Brienfrom WRIC 8NEWS won two tickets to the MAGNIFICENT Midlothian Food Festival. I have a couple of tickets left for the food festival. Just reply to this email if you’d like to buy a pair.
Thursday, September 21 – Money, Money, Money
After my semi-regular meeting of the Insiders Club at the Commonwealth Club Thursday, I congratulated my friend and UR Basketball super-fan Jeff Crook on his big moves this week. One, he sold his company Experity to Paychex, and secondly, he’s joined the team at Village Bank. Congrats Jeff! Any chance I can get a loan from you, now that you’re loaded and work for a bank? If not, I can always go back to winning $20 each time VCU beats the Spiders. #SickBurn
Friday, September 22 – Sorry, I’m Busy
Matt, Sophie, and Kaity went to Creative Mornings and listened to Heather Winkle from Capital One, who spoke about about compassion. I hear the message was completely lost on Kaity.
While I am rubbing elbows with Rotarians, Art and Kaitlin are working with our good friends Hal and Noah of Broadscope Media at the Richmond City Jail. Even though they have all been there before, this time they are shooting a TV spot for the Office of the Attorney General. Our Project Safe Neighborhoods‘ public affairs campaign, called Respect Richmond, launches next week. #staytuned
“Africa has seven out of the ten fastest-growing economies in the world. In Nigeria alone, there are 100 million people with mobile phones. In total, 300 million Africans — five times the population of Britain — are in the middle class.” — David Miliband, British Politician