My Kind of Town …

I was startled when doing some blog surfing the other day. There are an astounding number of listings for “Five Things I Hate About Milwaukee.” Milwaukee being the big city just to our east (and my place of birth), I just can’t let that go unchallenged. I recognize that there are lots of similar blogs about every major city (you should see what people say about Chicago!), but here, in no particular order, are the things I love about Milwaukee:

• Fantastic restaurants … I defy you to find another city of Milwaukee’s size that is so jam-packed with marvelous cuisine and astounding diversity. Go ahead. I dare you!
• Wonderful people … Everybody should be as nice as Milwaukeeans. I’ve never been “taken for a ride” by a cab driver who thought I might be an out of towner, and where else can you find more than 52,000 people who would come out to watch baseball games featuring teams from two other cities?
• Parks … Oh man, have we got beautiful parks. Many have immaculate public golf courses, including one that is even good enough to host an annual PGA tour event. When’s the last time you were able to say that you played golf on the same course that hosted Tiger Woods’ first round as a professional? You can do that any time if you live in or around Milwaukee.
• Culture … up the wazoo! The theatre district is home to some of America’s finest venues for plays, concerts, art shows, etc. The Milwaukee Symphony is a gem … just ask Doc Severinsen!
• Summerfest … The “Big Gig” is going strong after 40 years and is, without a doubt, the world’s largest music festival.
• More festivals … Ethnic festivals on the beautiful Lake Michigan lakefront every weekend during the summer ensure that our families have something interesting and fun to do that doesn’t involve sitting in front of a TV. Personally, my favorite is Fiesta Mexicana … or Irish Fest … or Festa Italiana … or Indian Summer … or Polish Fest … well, you get the idea!
• Big time sports … From MLB’s Milwaukee Brewers to the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks and everything in between, Milwaukeeans are blessed with outstanding professional and college sports (We ARE … Marquette!) all-year round. Don’t forget, we also have strong ties to the Green Bay Packers, the Wisconsin Badgers, and the UW-Milwaukee Panthers.
• Fantastic restaurants … Oops, covered that already. But they’re worth mentioning again!
• Famous people … Besides our professional athletes there are many home-grown actors, singers and major mensa types around here. Even Jesus Christ comes from Milwaukee (well, at least Jim Caviezel, the actor who portrayed Him in “The Passion of the Christ” does … same with Sam Page of “Shark,” Daniel Travanti of “Hill Street Blues” fame, Al Jarreau, Frank Lloyd Wright, Orson Welles, Liberace, the BoDeans, and OPRAH!). We used to be able to stare in awe as Halle Berry walked down the street, but her former husband, Eric Benet, screwed that up for us!
• History … Everything from the Civil War underground railroad to Gen. Billy Mitchell and the ill-fated Edmund Fitzgerald have ties to our town.
• My wife … she was born here, too!
• BEER!!! (And you thought I forgot!)

Johnson Direct LLC

800-710-2750

The comments expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of Johnson Direct, LLC.

Stone Cold

The bell has tolled for Dateline NBC host Stone Phillips. The network announced yesterday that his last appearance on Dateline, and on NBC for that matter, will be in June. Probably not a bad thing – for NBC and even for Phillips. NBC needs to keep on trying just about anything to boost their sagging ratings, and Phillips has just been there much too long for someone who hasn’t made it to anchor status. And for him, it’s a chance to look at other options to pursue before he reaches the “too late” stage of his career. When he first appeared on NBC’s air 125 years ago, he was a fresh new face. Now, even Just for Men can’t help him. You can put a bowtie on a cadaver … but it’s still a cadaver.

I’m not part of that camp that favors dumping someone just because of their age. Television deserves a major Bronx cheer for doing that time and again. But neither do I feel that someone who is not contributing anything meaningful should be kept around just because he’s, well, there.

Unless he’s dumb as a stone, his many years of network TV should have set him up nicely, and he shouldn’t have a difficult time finding something else to do. He can always go on cable with Star Jones, or move over to satellite radio and howl at the moon. He’s going to come out of this just fine. And so will we.

What the heck kind of name is “Stone” anyway?

Grant Johnson

Johnson Direct LLC

800-710-2750

On Manners Lost and Things Taken for Granted

Consideration. Have you thought much about that word lately? I sure have.

I remember a time when you let another driver skip in front of you, held the door for the person behind you, or did something extra special for someone you barely knew … and they appreciated it. And thanked you.

When did we all become so darn busy that we lost our manners and started taking the little things for granted? Now it’s all road rage, ‘roid rage, outrage! We may not know exactly what it is, but we’re sure as heck mad about something, and we’re going to take it out on every poor schmo who happens to get in our way.

Remember the ’80s? Everybody thought Japan was going to economically destroy the US, so we emulated the Japanese work mentality. We went from rocking around the clock to working around the clock. Suddenly, just driving a good car wasn’t enough. It had to be something eye-catching and jealousy-generating. We didn’t want to admit it, but we all wanted to be almost as ruthless as the guy in “American Psycho,” or the anti-hero in the short-lived TV series “Profit.” We all wanted to be Gordon Gekko from “Wall Street.” Maybe that’s when it all started.

Or maybe it goes back to the ’70s … first Vietnam, then the Arab oil embargo, and then the Iran Hostage Crisis. I remember a blustering Congressman warning Iran: “Beware an angry American!” Damn right, I thought. And we got angry. Then again, maybe it was Yoko Ono’s fault for breaking up the Beatles. Talk about making us angry!

Maybe it goes back to the ’60s … to the Bay of Pigs, to our grief over JFK, MLK, RFK and our anger at the unfairness of it all. Charles Manson. Maybe we buried our anger by numbing out through taking on more and more work.

Whenever it all started, we somehow lost the best part of ourselves … our innate consideration for each other. It’s time for us to remember that each of us does our best in everything … work, home life, friendships, business relationships … when we work together and care about each other. Just because we may do something day after day doesn’t mean we have to do it with apathy or lack of decency towards one another.

Aretha said it best: R E S P E C T!

Respect one another. Respect each other’s talents … feelings … humanity.

Grant Johnson

Johnson Direct LLC

800-710-2750

A Prayer Answered

I’m happy to note that the cremated remains of NASA hero Gordon Cooper and Star Trek actor James Doohan, accidentally jettisoned from a rocket, have been located, along with those of 200 others, in rugged mountain terrain in New Mexico. UP Aerospace, which conducted the flight that originally carried the cargo destined to orbit the earth, announced today that the remains have been found in good condition. Although the search took several days, the company said it had been certain of the precious payload’s location since yesterday, but needed to wait until the weather cleared to recover it.

So, here’s to ya, Gordo and Scotty. May the next attempt be entirely successful, and may you find eternal peace in the skies above us.

Steve Gardner

Johnson Direct LLC

800-710-2750

The comments expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of Johnson Direct, LLC.

Seth Stevenson is a god!

Man, that Seth Stevenson at slate.com has a life!  He’s given comped accommodations in Miami at the annual CLIO advertising awards, and he’s still got the chops to make it clear that he doesn’t think too much of glitzy ads unless they somehow manage to sell products.  Check out www.slate.com/id/2166140/.

As Seth points out:  “Ad execs fancy themselves to be gifted artists trapped by the mundanities of commerce … I always love perusing the print-ad finalists.  So many clever graphics, with visual jokes that work in any language.  The big winner this year was a print campaign for 42 Below vodka.  These ads each tell a funny (and generally naughty) narrative through a series of pictograms.  The recurring symbol is a bottle of 42 Below vodka, which always leads to subsequent high jinks.  My only problem with the campaign is that in many of the ads, drinking vodka leads to a rather unpleasant outcome.  Like venereal disease.  An accurate take, perhaps, but it seems like it might be wiser to elide the nastier consequences of drunkenness.”

Look at it this way:  a very high-priced attorney lands all the famous defendants after they pop a paparazzo, gun down their girlfriend, or – oops, she did it again! – forget to put on their underwear before going out in public.  He loses every case!  All the celebs go to jail or, at least, pay a hefty fine.  But the attorney?  Well, he gets lots of face time on the tube, and he STILL GETS PAID!

If that seems senseless to you, then pay a visit to any one of a number of marketing/advertising agencies today.  As Seth’s column notes, they win all kinds of glittery awards and fame for their slick, gimmicky, usually UNSUCCESSFUL campaigns.  But their clients STILL PAY!

Agencies that are going to survive and prosper are those that remember one simple thing:  if the client loses, we lose.  At Johnson Direct, marketing is about selling products and services, not about being cute, sexy or slick.

More power to you, Seth!

Grant Johnson

Johnson Direct LLC

800-710-2750

Stock Photo Conundrum

I was recently emailed the link to Steve Hall’s website entitled “Nine Reasons Not to Use Stock Photography (www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/c.cgi?u=stock_photos),” and it made me stop to think.  While I may not completely agree with the way Mr. Hall made a few of his points (some of his language is a bit “colorful” for my taste), I do have to agree with most of the points he was trying to make.

It seems like almost every time I sit down to read the newspaper or a magazine, I find at least one ad layout that uses a photo Johnson Direct also has in its stock photo library.  It makes me wonder how many things that poor woman, man or family has going wrong in life.  Last month, I saw her in an ad for hemorrhoid cream.  This week, she’s in dire need of a new and better diet plan.  And what do you know, she lives in the next town and goes to the same health clinic I do!  Good thing, too, with those hemorrhoids and poor diet.

Unfortunately, the abundance of stock photography out there, some of which is quite good, has stopped many clients from even considering the idea of custom photography.  They assume they will have “free access” to anything in their agency’s photo library.  Yes, custom photography will cost more.  But isn’t it worth it to know that the family having so much fun on their picnic in your life insurance ad isn’t the same family with a member in need of a kidney transplant?

Mary Nygaard

Johnson Direct LLC

800-710-2750

Mind Your Phone Manners! It’s Good Business

We’ve all been there …

8:05 a.m.  Your coffee is fresh and hot.  You’ve logged in to your computer and realized that there are at least a dozen new emails that weren’t there when you logged out last night.  You’re about to listen to the several voice mail messages patiently waiting for your attention … and then your phone rings.

You look at it with trepidation.  Should you pick it up?  What if it is one of the 16 (relentless) sales reps (printers, e-mailers, list brokers, ink cartridge resellers, media agents, job recruiters, etc.) that have been trying to catch you at your desk for the last four weeks?  What then?

Your temperature rises … the phone rings again … you scan your desk seeing piles and piles of paperwork, and your eye catches your overflowing in-box.  Perspiration is fighting its way to your skin’s surface and it’s only 8:07 a.m.!  The phone rings again … you snatch it up and bark into the receiver a less than pleasant – dare I say uncouth – greeting.

… It’s happened to the best of us.

However, in today’s working world, no organization can afford employees who have ill-mannered, bad tempered phone manners.  In this super-competitive business environment, the risk of losing prospects or customers due to lackluster or downright rude phone etiquette is simply not acceptable!

If you witness undesirable phone etiquette in your work setting, do your co-worker(s) a favor and call them on it!

Here are five essential tips to share with anyone who has access to a phone in your office:

1. Always answer your phone with a smile on your face … the caller will sense your smile.
2. Always be kind and polite.  Never forget to use “please” and “thank you.”
3. Remember to speak clearly and slowly, especially when identifying yourself.
4. Don’t forget the three speakerphone courtesies – a) inform the person that you have them on the speakerphone; b) identify each person who is in the room; and c) state their purpose in being present during the conversation.
5. Remember you’ll never get a second chance to make a first impression.

With all the high-tech devices we use to communicate today, nothing replaces the good old telephone when it’s in the hands of a wise, image-conscious professional. 

Please have a good day.  And thank you for your time.

Sandy Pagel

Johnson Direct LLC

800-710-2750

Striking a Chord

For an agency that doesn’t care much for “killer” creative, we still have to recognize that sometimes a message just strikes a chord in people. The question, though, is all buzz good buzz? Or is “creative” in the eye of the beholder?

A Chicago law firm specializing in handling divorce cases has gained national attention for a billboard that simply states “Life is Short. Get a Divorce.” Well, it also includes pictures of a guy whose six-pack abs and a woman whose chest are rather, shall we say, impressive?

Take look for yourself.

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/ver/230/popup/index.php?cl=2647676

As a man who has been married for 30 years, but once divorced before that, it’s hard to say what I think of the billboard. I’m totally in favor of spending your life with the right person. On the other hand, it took me two tries to find her. Am I offended by the billboard? Not really, although I can see where some people would be. I’d like to say that I’m offended, but can’t deny that it really caught my attention. Will I run out and get a divorce? No way!

I think the law firm missed a chance here. Rather than express outrage that the billboard was removed (over a permit issue), they could have stressed that it did exactly what they wanted it to do … generate buzz. The question remains, though, did it generate business? Buzz without business is rarely worth the money.

Your thoughts, readers? Would love to hear from you.

Johnson Direct LLC

800-710-2750

The comments expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official opinions of Johnson Direct, LLC.

What We Got Here … is a Failure to Communicate!

Forgive me for using that famous line from Paul Newman’s “Cool Hand Luke” to headline a blog posting about the most famous do-nothing in the world, Paris Hilton.

At last the truth comes out! Paris wasn’t at fault for driving drunk! She wasn’t at fault for violating her probation. No! It was her publicist’s fault, and he’s paid for it with his job. Actually, he’s lucky Paris’ snarky Mom, Kathy, took out her wrath on the judge rather than the publicist. After all, apparently he failed to communicate Paris’ caring, concerned nature well enough to keep her out of the slammer. He failed to put the proper “spin” on his client’s desire to thumb her nose at society. He may only be a publicist (and as we all know, they are not nearly as talented as public relations people!), but throwing the blame on his shoulders is rather like a snake shedding her skin and slithering away from the remains.

Here’s an idea for you, Paris. While you’re in the big house, look around you. Look at all the others who are having to take responsibility for their own actions. That’s exactly what you should be doing … taking responsibility for what did. Yourself. All on your own. Don’t blame it on your publicist!

This reminds me of another good movie line … from a movie that was schlocky but obviously too good to cast Paris Hilton. The movie was “Deep Blue Sea,” and in it LL Cool J says “Oh man … I’m not going to get out of here alive. Brothers never get out of these situations alive!”

Almost but not quite, LL. It’s publicists who never make it out alive. Then again, when you make your living promoting someone who doesn’t do anything, maybe you deserve it.

Here endeth the rant for today.

Johnson Direct LLC

800-710-2750

The comments expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official opinions of Johnson Direct, LLC.

NO! NEIN! NYET!

Rejection hurts. How many times do we need to hear “No” before we want to just chuck it all and open a taco stand in Maui?

But rejection is part of life for everybody, and particularly for professional sales people. Pam Lontos has written an excellent article in Motivation newsletter called “How to turn up your attitude when prospects turn you down.” I think it’s so good that I’d like to pass along a link to all of you: www.sellingpower.com/html_newsletter.

Rob Trecek

Johnson Direct

800-710-2750

The comments expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of Johnson Direct, LLC.