2020 Vision Has Never Been So Cloudy
I’m not a psychic. I’ve never been able to predict the future. If I could really see what’s next I would’ve bought Facebook stock at $27 a share and I’d be a rich man by now. (Okay, not really, but those 10 shares of Facebook are worth $2,300 today.) When you are developing strategic plans for clients, it forces you to look at the future. At the end of the day, I have to give my clients a “best guess” on what tomorrow might bring.
After 30 years in this business, I thought I was getting good at making predictions, but 2020 has thrown me for a loop. If you recall in the October 25, 2019 edition of the Weekly Report, I predicted a recession for the first quarter of this year. #YayIWasRight However, I do not believe I could have ever predicted COVID-19, a global economic shutdown, murder hornets, or riots and civil unrest in every corner of the country. I know that things may look bleak, but better days are ahead. There is an old adage that says, “the darkest hour is just before dawn.” As an optimist, I have always believed that. I also believe that in many ways, for America, this has been our darkest hour and that these last few months have been our darkest year…or what has seemed like a year.
But you’ll just have to trust me on this prediction — brighter days are ahead for you and for me, for our families, for our businesses, and for our community. Why? Because I believe in the power of people. I believe in positive change. And I believe in possibility. Regardless of your situation, where you were born, or the color of your skin, I believe that every person has the ability to affect a positive change. When we work together to determine what’s possible, we find that nothing is impossible. And in these dark times, I take solace in the fact that positive change is coming.
Yes, 2020 has been a challenging year for everyone, but I encourage you to keep your 2020 vision.
And here is the best news for all of you. After three weeks of exile in OBX, I am making my triumphant return to RVA tomorrow. I know that you all have missed me. Once I have cleaned all of the sand out of the Jeep, I am going to help our neighbors clean up.
Monday, June 1 – Five Years And Counting!
On Monday, our Director of Account Services Kaitlin Thomas celebrated five years with Madison+Main. Time flies, doesn’t it? Our rockstar account team supervisor has helped our agency get to the next level over the past half-decade, yet sometimes I still call her by her maiden name. If you have a chance, email her here and say congrats. On our company’s new annual review form, we asked the question, “What is the biggest challenge you face at work?” Kaitlin’s answer, ”Dave.” I must be doing something right.
We’ve been helping many clients change their business and marketing strategies during COVID-19, and our clients at Hitting Cancer Below the Belt (HCB2) are getting lots of media attention for how they have handled their 8th Annual Boxer Brief 5K. HCB2 Founder and Executive Director Mindy Conklin was on CBS6 News program “Virginia This Morning” on Monday explaining how this year’s 5K is coping with “social distancing.” Click here to learn more about the “Stay Away” 5K.
Tuesday, June 2 – M+M Continues Its Winning Ways
On Tuesday it was all about the hardware. Madison+Main learned that we won five big, beautiful Telly Award statues — two silver and three bronze — for video work that we produced for Virginia Energy Sense, Who’s Your Driver?, Lucy Corr, and Vera’s Fine Jewelers. Check out Madison+Main’s 2020 Telly Award-Winning YouTube Playlist today.
We continued our winning ways with the announcement from the Richmond Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) that M+M won the Commonwealth Award of Merit in the Public Service category for the 2019 “Who’s Your Driver?” campaign for our clients at DRIVE SMART Virginia.
Wednesday, June 3 – Breaking Quarantine For A Good Reason…Bourbon
Account Executive Allison “The Rock” Throckmorton-Nida and Creative Director Art “Spinning His Own” Webb decided to travel separately to visit our clients at A. Smith Bowman Distillery to meet with Master Distiller Brian Prewitt, record a video for Father’s Day, and check out their new bottling line. Hey, if you have to break quarantine, it should be for a good reason…like bourbon.
Thursday, June 4 – Speaking Of Molly
On Thursday, I had a scheduling snafu and M+M President Molly Whitfield jumped in to help me. While I was in training for the Virginia Council of CEOs, Molly stepped in to be the featured speaker at the South Richmond Rotary Club’s weekly meeting. Molly visited with them via Zoom and dropped some knowledge bombs on the two dozen business owners (and retirees) in attendance. #ZoomBoom (On a personal note, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate her stepping in.) I seek the limelight. Molly prefers to stay behind the scenes and I know giving a talk to strangers via video conference probably gave her an anxiety attack and some hardcore indigestion. #TumTaTumTumTuuuums
Friday, June 5 – I’ve Never Been Happy About Number Two
Phase Two of Virginia’s not-so-grand reopening starts today at 5 p.m. — except for one-third of the Commonwealth that resides in Northern Virginia and ten percent of the population who live in Richmond. If you’re lucky enough to live in one of the other 92 counties or 36 cities that are re-opening tonight, you’ll be able to get back to some sort of normalcy — by going to a gym, eating at a restaurant, or attending a gathering of up to 50 people. To celebrate Phase Two in the most Richmond way possible, I am going to buy a keg of PBR, four dozen Sugar Shack donuts, a cheap party tent from Walmart, and invite 49 friends to an impromptu party underneath the Richmond City Limit sign next to Rocketts Landing on the Henrico County side. Here, we will taunt passers-by from across the street. RSVP today to join my version of the National Doughnut Day party.
A Few of Our Favorite Events
HCB2 Boxer Brief “Stay Away” 5K
Virtual Event | Richmond, VA (and beyond)
June 6-7, 2020
Walk or run your 3.1 miles anywhere! This year, the virtual event will be held over a two day period to encourage proper distancing and adherence to state and local guidelines. The Boxer Brief 5K has been HCB2’s largest educational and awareness raising event for colorectal cancer prevention since 2013. Share your images and use the hashtag #BoxerBriefStayAway5k on their Facebook event page.
Got an upcoming event you want to share? Can we come? Send us the deets!
“I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality…I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word.”
— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.