I'm looking for a good back hoe!!

I’m looking for a good used back hoe. Well not for me. The equipment is for Sister Maria Rosa Leggol and her children. Sister is head of Sociedad Amigos de los Ninos (SAN) in Tegucigalpa Honduras. She runs two orphanages that care for children that have been abandoned or have parents that are incarcerated. She runs a farm for teenage boys to help them learn life and trade skills. She runs a vocational school for girls that helps them complete their GED and teaches them computer, sewing and secretarial skills. She also sponsors a number of micro businesses that employ local help and generate revenue for SAN and its mission. She is known throughout the region as the “Mother Teresa” of Honduras.



Sister and her boys.

I had the opportunity to travel to Honduras about a month ago. A group of us from our church helped refurbish bathrooms, install water tanks to insure a constant supply of clean water, deliver books and school materials for the children and help wherever we could to make life a bit easier for the staff and children.

There are so many needs.
Over 70% of the population of Honduras lives below the poverty line. About 30% of the population is unemployed. The average wage for a worker is only $10 per day. That said the people we met were filled with hope and willing to work to create a better life for themselves and the children they support

The brick factory
One of the ways SAN is teaching the community to fish is by running a brick factory to provide bricks for construction and employment to the local community. Cielos de Honduras is a for-profit enterprise that currently manufactures over 2 million bricks per year. The bricks are used to build houses on Sociedad’s property and also to sell into the local economy. Sister is providing an engine to teach local residents how to fish and provide for themselves.

The manufacturing process is extremely labor intensive. Soil (a mixture of sand and clay) is dug by hand, transported to a central facility and mixed to achieve the desired consistency. The soil is then poured (again by hand) into an auger and mixed with water. The slurry is pressed through a form, cut with piano wire (again by hand) into bricks, placed on a cart and then carried to an area under a shade where the bricks will dry for up to three weeks. (More pics) They are stacked into a kiln, fired for 24 hours and then after they cool are ready for sale.

The price of a finished brick is less than 10 cents each.

A back hoe
The primary bottleneck in the process is the first step. Workers are only able to dig down about 36” due to the hardness of the soil. This means that much more land needs to be purchased to acquire raw material. It is more difficult to stockpile material. The entire process often comes to a halt during the rainy season because it is impossible to get into the fields to dig soil.

A back hoe would enable the workers to dig down 6 – 8 feet and create stockpiles of material that would keep production going year round. The cost of a used one is about $25,000. The team has an excellent work ethic and mechanical skills and a passion to grow the business for their children and their community but they don’t currently have the financial resources to buy a back hoe.

What we need
What we are looking for is a foundation partner that would be willing to provide the funds for SAN to acquire a back hoe. (Picture of a suitable machine) An ideal situation would be working with a foundation at Caterpillar or John Deere to provide internal funding for a dealership in Honduras or here in the states to donate a machine. (I am trying to find a contact) An alternative approach would be to work with a non affiliated foundation or group that would be willing to provide cash funding for us to purchase a used machine that we can transport to SAN.


Potential Tax Savings
Contributions can be directed to Friends of Honduran Children, a 501 c(3) organization (authorization letter). Therefor any contribution or donation of equipment may be eligible for a tax deduction.


Lets create a win/win and help the children!

Sister and her team have an incredible, heartwarming story. I am sure with a bit of positive public relations this will be a win/win for the donor and SAN. Please let me know if you have any ideas for how to get this done.

The children will thank you.

Until next time – all the best!

RolandB

Ipods and responsibility

I was at the gym this morning, doing some sit-ups when I thought I heard music. At first I thought I must be working out too hard but I definitely heard music. Stopping I looked around. There was a girl about 30 feet away from me lifting weights listening to an Ipod. She was jamming to the music oblivious to everyone around her.

A bit later I was in the steam room. I had my eyes closed, in my own world and I began hearing music again. Sure enough there was a guy on the other side of the room listening to an Ipod in the steam. I don’t know how smart it is for anyone to strap a battery to his body, put a transducer in his ear and complete the circuit with a bit of water.

The inner ear contains the smallest bones in the body and is the core to balance. The human ear can hear sounds as soft as a pin dropping from several feet away. I’m not a doctor but if I can hear music 30 feet away it can’t be good for the listener’s inner ear.

I wonder if someone will sue Apple someday because they lost their hearing or maybe sue a manufacturer someday because they shocked themselves in a steam room, disrupted their inner ear and now cannot function normally because they are dizzy. A lawyer will argue that the manufacturer should have put a label on the product to warn the consumer “playing at maximum volume may cause permanent damage to the ear” and “do not use this product in a steam room”. The last lawnmower I purchased had a sticker on the casing that said “do not use this mower while barefoot” - duh!!

I wish a defense could be the user of the product should have some common sense and take responsibility for their actions. Caveat emptor – let the buyer beware.

Insurance against lawsuits is big business. We could be using the money we are spending for insurance to protect us against these actions for better things like inventing and bringing to market new products.

Until next time – all the best!

RolandB

They were all texting!

I went to the Indiana Pacers – Cleveland Cavaliers basketball game last night. It was a fantastic game. LeBron had 47 points and the Pacers won by 1 point. A great night.

What struck me was the number of teenagers and twentysomethings at the game. There were a lot of them. And also what many were doing before, after and during the game. They were texting! The girl sitting in front of me must have sent 50 messages over the course of the 2 hour game. Using two thumbs she could put words on her i-phone faster than I can type on my laptop.

I don’t know how they watch the game, talk to their friends next to them and keep up with multiple conversations via texting but they seem to pull this multi-tasking off.

The marketer that can join this conversation should have a unique advantage.

Until next time – all the best!

RolandB

A Venture Idol Experience

I recently competed in a very interesting, educational and fun contest called Venture Idol. I wrote a article about the experience which was published recently in Inside Indiana Business, a daily newsletter on events of interest.

The following is the full version of the article.

Until next time - all the best!

RolandB

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A Venture Idol experience
By Roland Bydlon - Director of Marketing, ParaPRO LLC

Many of us have heard the term “elevator pitch”. You get on an elevator with Bill Gates and you proceed to explain your company’s big idea or reason for existence before he gets off in 60 seconds or less. Think you can do it? I had the opportunity recently to make that pitch in a public forum. The event was the Indiana Venture Idol competition and the audience was over 200 investors and business owners tasked with evaluating and voting for a winner.

I survived the first round and made it to the finals but unfortunately ParaPRO did not win the $10,000 grand prize. What I did “win” was renewed confidence in our message, invaluable exposure for our company and, most importantly, renewed faith in the ability of teamwork to create a result that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Life teaches us that successful businesses are built by people that are passionate about what they do. Research has found that in the best companies the owners, and individuals in sales and marketing, customer service, even the back office are able to distinctly communicate what their company does and how their job fits in with investors, customers, vendors and other employees.

Venture Idol was hosted by the Venture Club of Indiana and the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC). It was advertised as a unique, exciting competition that enables young entrepreneurial companies to compete for a $10,000 grand prize – plus the chance to showcase their innovation, market opportunity, and passion before a live audience of leading Angels, venture capitalists and entrepreneurs. Venture Idol was designed to allow Indiana companies to shine in front of a national audience.

The risk was you could also fail in front of a national audience.

As part of process for getting participants ready for the competition Bruce Kidd and the IEDC paired each entrant with a coach to initially critique the presentation on a one on one basis and then provided a forum where individuals could “dry run” their presentations in a friendly, controlled environment.

When I found out ParaPRO had been selected to compete. I wrote my 60 second and 5 minute presentations. Participants would present an expanded 5 minute presentation if they made it past the initial round. I practiced it numerous times, on my own. Even gave it to my dog, Sadie as we walked around the neighborhood. She was very appreciative. I was confident and ready.

My coach stopped by for our initial meeting. I gave my pitch. He told me I had a great speech. Too bad it was 3 minutes long. My 5 minute talk came in at about 10. My slides were confusing. My talk was missing the mark.

I went back to the drawing board simplified, rewrote, and practiced – now it was on to present to a group of 6 observers most from different backgrounds than health care.

ParaPRO is developing a product to treat head lice. A key benefit we hope to prove is that the product will kill lice and eggs. Parents will no longer have to comb out nits. I went into my story about nits and combing and time and frustration.

One of my coaches commented, after telling me I was way over the time limit, why don’t you just say that ParaPRO will eliminate nitpicking! BINGO! Here was an interesting way to summarize a benefit and get audience participation in a very short period of time. I was comfortable, had a tested message and had weathered the storm. Now I was ready.

The actual event was fun. I enjoyed having the opportunity to spread the word about our product, our company and how we were creating value in Indiana. It was a great day.

It never would have happened without a few individuals (you know who you are) that had the time and the patience to coach a passionate and nervous individual (me) to concisely tell a story that I knew very well but did not have the experience “performing”.

The event was a win for ParaPRO, a win for the attendees and a win for Indiana.

Here are my take aways from the experience:

• Develop a message
• Practice it in front of smart people
• Listen to their feedback
• Take risks, spread the word about what you do
• Have fun & enjoy the ride

The following are some selected lines from a poem I copied many years ago and have carried with me (author unknown)
To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.
To reach out is to risk involvement.
To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self.
To try is to risk failure.
But the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing.
The one who risks nothing, does nothing and has nothing.
Only the one who risks is free.

Roland J. Bydlon is Director of Marketing at ParaPRO LLC. ParaPRO is a privately held, specialty pharmaceutical company. Their first product, a promising new medicine for the treatment of head lice, is currently under review by the FDA. More information can be found at ParaPRO website

What We Can Learn From The Election Campaigns

I read an excellent post this morning that was written by Uriah Av-Ron on critical things to do in digital marketing - for that matter marketing in general. Whoever you supported in the presidential election I think you will agree that Senator, now President-Elect Obama ran a very good campaign, connected with his key supporters and raised a record amount of money for his campaign

Mr. Av-Ron offers 5 suggestions.

1. Maintain a consistent brand message
2. Use Social Networking and other means to talk to your customers and allow them to talk to you
3. Address customer pains - keep in short, relevant and consistent
4. Seek out new market opportunities
5. Implement strategy with tactics - all tactics must tie back to an overall strategy
   

Have a plan. Change it slightly if and when you need to but maintain an overall plan, measure the results and stick to it.

I copied the entire article below.

Until next time - All the best!

RolandB

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What We Can Learn From The Election Campaigns
by Uriah Av-Ron, Thursday, Nov 13, 2008 7:32 AM ET

As a U.S. citizen, I am inspired by this election process which culminated in President-elect Barack Obama's historic victory. And as a publicist working in digital marketing, I found a lot of valuable learning experiences from his campaign that are extremely relevant to online marketers.

1. Maintain a consistent brand message
In this election year, when a campaign could edit and upload a video to YouTube in less than an hour, Obama showed a level of consistency of message that is unprecedented. Though the Obama team did respond to challenges and opportunities from Sen. John McCain's campaign, the overlying message of change was consistent throughout.
This consistency was accentuated in the final month of the campaign by McCain's inconsistency following the financial crisis on Wall Street. First McCain stopped his campaign to take care of the crisis, and then flip-flopped by participating in the first debate a week before Congressional bailout plan was passed. Even Obama's even-tempered disposition during the three presidential debates stood in stark contrast to McCain's tempo, facial expressions and pacing.
In reviewing some of Obama's initial online videos uploaded onto YouTube from early 2007 and 2008. The messaging theme of "change" was already evident in these early videos.
By maintaining a consistent message, Obama also managed to deflect some of the challenges to his campaign, including his lack of executive experience and his association with William Ayres.
As marketers, we all too often have the urge to change something -- a tagline, ad creative, a messaging point -- with something newer. But as we can learn from the Obama's campaign, in this case, change isn't necessarily a good thing.

2. Use of Social Networking
We keep hearing that social networking websites are only good for branding campaigns, yet Obama raised much of his $600 million war chest using social networking. That's quite a result for an ad vehicle that's not supposed to generate results.
I suspect the secret here is in inspiring passion. The challenge for most marketers is that the products or services we are marketing don't inspire passion among the masses. But even if our products or services don't inspire passion, we can all find a way to tie our products or services to ideas that do inspire passion. For example, for a client in online publishing, I'm pitching a charity drive where monies are raised and donated to support literacy. A component of this effort should involve having my client's employees become personally involved in a literacy outreach. There is nothing like the inspiration derived from helping a little boy or girl learn to read.
But a charity campaign is only one way. There are many ways to inspire passion in our customers and communities. And as good marketers, it's up to us to figure out ways to inspire passion.

3. Address customer pains
I watched Obama's response to President George W. Bush's State of the Union Address from January of this year on YouTube where he referred to a sagging economy and problems in the banking system. Though Obama didn't make the economy the main issue of his campaign before September, he clearly understood the importance of economy in the election. And of course, Americans were ripe for change.
In contrast, McCain focused on a range of issues including Iraq and earmarks, which did not resonate with enough Americans.
So when was the last time you spoke with one of your customers? I have learned some of my best marketing lessons from conversations with customers. Marketers should speak at least once per week (if not more) with customers.

4. Seek out new market opportunities
The two main ways to increase sales are to (a) increase your share of the market, and (b) to look for new markets where you can increase your sales. But how many of us expected to see Indiana in the list of markets Obama would pursue?
One of the reasons cited for the Obama campaign's primary victory over Senator Hillary Clinton is the presence of an Obama organization in almost every state. Obama used this organizational advantage to win most of the primaries held immediately after Super Tuesday. He then took the lead in the delegate race and never looked back.
Again in the national election, Obama had strong organizational networks in place in a number of states that had voted for President George W. Bush in 2004, including Virginia, Indiana, Florida and North Carolina. These efforts enabled registering millions of voters and encouraging them to get out and vote.
So how can marketers tap into new markets? There are no easy answers here, but it takes an open mind that's willing to look in unconventional places and through partnerships that enable opening new market opportunities.

5. Implement strategy with tactics
In difficult economic times, there is a tendency to forgo strategy and focus on tactics. But the best tactics are an extension and implementation of a properly defined strategy.
Obama focused on a consistent message centered on a strategy of change and utilized defensive tactics to marginalize McCain's challenges in the face of his own messaging.
In the final month and a half of the campaign, McCain focused exclusively on a range of changing tactics in attempt to improve his poll numbers.
Specifically in the current economic climate, digital marketers need to define strategies that will carry them through the next couple of years and develop tactical plans that will enable them to deliver according to the strategy.
In his concession speech, McCain showed his dignity and humility which have characterized the bipartisan spirit of his tenure in the U.S. Senate. Just maybe, that tone, tempo and messaging, minus a Wall Street crisis, could have brought about a different result.
Av-Ron is the founder/partner of www.oasis-pr.com, an Internet & technology-focused PR agency.

Are you LinkedIN?

I was reminded several times over the past few weeks of the value of LinkedIN or other social networking sites. I reconnected with several good friends from my past. They "found" me over LinkedIN. I had dinner with a old friend last week in San Diego that I had not seen in years. I had breakfast with a fellow submarine officer that is here in Indianapolis.

I'm up to 194 contacts and I am not really trying.

It is a great way to stay in touch with business collegues. You never know when you may need one.

Until next time - all the best!

RolandB

A visit to the license bureau

This is a note I sent to Matthew Tully, the political reporter at the Indianapolis Star today.

I went to renew my driver’s license today. Not a big thing but something I don’t look forward to. The last time, 4 years ago, I stood in one line to check in, waited for 45 minutes, stood in another line to take my eye exam, stood in another line for my picture and another line to pay the bill. The entire visit was over 2 hours of frustration.

I visited the Nora branch today over my lunch hour. There were only about 10-15 people in the office. I was helped immediately. I was out in 15 minutes. The thing that hit me was the mood in the office. Everyone was smiling!! “Tell your friends we have the best branch in Marion County”. The staffer told me.

Wow – things have changed at the license branch.

My profession is marketing. One of the first lessons one learns is if you want your customers to return listen to them and treat them well. I never thought a bureaucratic organization like the license branch would make me smile. I don’t know how the governor and his staff did it but they have created a great organization at the license branch and deserve to be congratulated.

Now how do we get the same spirit into the Post Office?

Roland Bydlon
Indianapolis

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Politicians always seem to promise something and then come up with reasons/excuses why it never happened. The license bureau has been the whipping boy of inefficient government for the 20 years that I have lived in Indiana. I find it energizing that things are improving.

Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. You just have to look and appreciate the many small things that are improving our lives on a daily basis.

Until next time,

RolandB