Keanan Kintzel | Buzzazz Business Solutions https://buzzazz.com Tampa Bay's Best Digital Marketing Firm Tue, 23 Jan 2024 16:57:35 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.19 The Case for Institutional Advertising https://buzzazz.com/case-institutional-advertising/ Fri, 16 Sep 2016 14:32:24 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=4167 The Case for Institutional Advertising Although this important advertising strategy may seem foreign to some, the idea is not a new one. For years, companies have channeled millions of dollars into institutional ads in order to promote the goodwill of their respective companies’ verses selling their actual products and services. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, […]

The post The Case for Institutional Advertising appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Institutional AdvertisingThe Case for Institutional Advertising
Although this important advertising strategy may seem foreign to some, the idea is not a new one. For years, companies have channeled millions of dollars into institutional ads in order to promote the goodwill of their respective companies’ verses selling their actual products and services.

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, the idea behind Institutional Advertising is to promote a “…product so that people have a positive opinion of it, rather than the advertising of a particular product or service.” For example, in Subaru’s latest commercial, they feature young drivers in different accident scenarios with the spotlight being on the fact that the people lived. Their ads are designed to underscore safety, love, and the reliability of the Subaru brand. Clearly, Subaru’s ads are focused on people and their well being, as they reinforce positive memories under the umbrella of safety.

Another famous brand who uses institutional advertising is Coca-Cola. For many years, Coca-Cola has been promoting environmentalCoke exampleconcerns, such as recycling and Greenpeace. Worldwide, Coca-Cola is known for its key product: Coke. After all, “It’s the Real Thing®.”

If companies show their concern for people, the environment, safety, good health, etc., rather than tout their products per se, they will gain the respect of those who see their ads. Likewise, if a company, such as BP, who underwent the largest offshore oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, and for that matter, U.S. history, needs to repair their image, they would use institutional advertising in their approach. Even though the ads about clean-up and safety may have helped BP’s image, they still had to pay billions to those impacted by the devastation.

How much money a company needs to set aside for this type of advertising will depend on what they want to accomplish. Smaller companies may find it difficult to specify dollars for institutional ads, but if image repair is needed, they need to find a way.

Larger companies would do well to have an ongoing campaign, especially as seen in the case with BP. It is much easier to talk to the media and the public at large, when things are going well. To this end, I am reminded of a college professor who told our class that he was the public relations manager at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant, which is south of Harrisburg, PA, when it had a meltdown in 1979. What is interesting to note, is that in spite of the cataclysmic event, a good media relationship had already been established prior to the incident, which helped mitigate the effects of the disaster. In fact, that plant was able to re-open and still supplies nuclear power to thousands of people today. This did not happen by chance, as our professor, the PR manager, had already taken the time to meet with the press and to formulate the kind of advertising action plan needed to offset any negative situation.

Clearly, institutional advertising should be part of any business’ advertising plan. However, it is a must for all high profile companies because the risk is too great today. As we all know, just one negative incident can go global in seconds. Don’t take the chance, be prepared!

The post The Case for Institutional Advertising appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
TRUTH IN ADVERTISING https://buzzazz.com/truth-advertising-2/ Wed, 14 Sep 2016 17:51:18 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=4149 Our world is changing but not necessarily for the best. How many of us can say our lives are better for the advertising that dominates every aspect of our lives, from getting up in the morning to going to bed at night? TV, radio, internet, movies, newspapers, magazines, billboards, and mail; they’re all inundated with […]

The post TRUTH IN ADVERTISING appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Our world is changing but not necessarily for the best. How many of us can say our lives are better for the advertising that dominates every aspect of our lives, from getting up in the morning to going to bed at night?

TV, radio, internet, movies, newspapers, magazines, billboards, and mail; they’re all inundated with advertising that pressures you to buy it now because it’s bigger, better, faster and tougher than any of the others. Seems everyone and his brother has something to sell.

No wonder the truth has gone out of advertising if for no more reason than sheer overwhelming numbers. Like politics, you really can’t believe the hype until you have it in front of you and then it’s probably too late.

Look at prescription drugs; their TV advertising has degenerated to the point that a very large proportion of the time-slot is devoted to warning you that the product may harm or even kill you (an FDA mandate).

So why do they continue to advertise? Because the Ad agency knows their audience will eventually desensitize to the warnings until they no longer hear them at all.

We long for a simpler time when we could believe in the ‘widget’ we wanted as opposed to being bullied into buying what we don’t need by a faceless advertiser who probably never saw it and doesn’t care anyway.

But we can turn that to our advantage; in a vast ocean of advertising where nothing stands out, truth and integrity shine like a lone beacon in a sea of sameness.

That doesn’t happen overnight unfortunately; integrity is something that has to be earned and those that have established it became household names.

So you prospective advertisers; back off those excessive superlatives and tell it like it is. Oh yes, proofreading couldn’t hurt either; have you browsed the web lately? That rustling you hear is the old-time proofreaders spinning in their graves.  Just saying!

 

The post TRUTH IN ADVERTISING appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Education System of Common Core https://buzzazz.com/education-and-common-core/ Fri, 18 Mar 2016 15:45:13 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=3338 Does our Education System Help or Hurt our Children? Education Definition: the process of training and developing the knowledge, skill, mind, character, etc., especially by formal schooling; teaching & training The US has a long history (dating back to the 1600’s) of placing a rather high importance on the education of its children. So much […]

The post Education System of Common Core appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Does our Education System Help or Hurt our Children?

Education

Definition: the process of training and developing the knowledge, skill, mind, character, etc., especially by formal schooling; teaching & training

The US has a long history (dating back to the 1600’s) of placing a rather high importance on the education of its children.

So much so that it is one of the foundational virtues of the Founding Fathers.

Ideally, education in a free society would be the responsibility of the parents or the individual or local community, not the federal government.  There is no constitutional prohibition for states or local communities to be involved in education, and up until the mid-twentieth century, education was the responsibility of the church, the family and the local community.

The founders of this country were well educated, mostly by being homeschooled or taught in schools associated with a church.  In early times in new settlements, the families would band together to hire a teacher to come and teach.  Under those rather crude conditions –without palaces in which to teach—the children were taught the classics as well as foreign languages.  Today, our children can get through eight or even twelve grades without even touching these subjects.

Part of the problem with our current educational system is Common Core.  Common Core creates standards in education that are unhelpful and creates a system of basic memorization, rather than actual learning and absorption of knowledge.  Many public school teachers and administrators are against this concept as it interferes with the limited ability they have to actually teach their students something valuable.  Donald Trump said this in an interview with Fox News on October 18th, 2015, “Common Core is a very bad thing. I think that it should be local education. If you look at a Jeb Bush and some of these others, they want children to be educated by Washington, D.C. Bureaucrats.”

In the past sixty years, the federal government has become involved in financing and directing education at all levels.  There is no evidence that that quality of education has improved.  There is evidence to the contrary; national and international test scores are down, college costs have skyrocketed, there is evidence  that at the grade school and high school levels, where local schools and parents have ever less control over the curriculum and administration of schools, there’s definitely been more violence, more drugs and more dropouts associated with more centralized control.

Washington, DC, the only city that Congress has jurisdiction over, has one of the most expensive, most violent, most crime and drug-ridden school systems in the country.  And the only complaint Congress gets from the District of Columbia teachers and administrators is that they need more money.

The near monopoly control over the indoctrination of young people in our public school systems is counter-balanced by homeschooling, private schooling, and education readily available on the internet.  The regulations on starting a variety of alternatives to public schools are extremely tight and keep the market from operating as it might.  Once an institution is hooked on federal financing, it’s virtually impossible to stop the bureaucratic regulations and mandates that routinely follow subsidies.

The NEA (National Education Association), one of the most powerful lobby groups in the country, not only successfully agitates for structural and bureaucratic excesses, it is responsible for teacher salaries and retirement benefits that far exceed those of the private sector.  The future obligation to pay all the retirement and health benefits will require a constant inflow of revenues.

Many pension funds are NOT solvent.  With an economy that is likely to remain weak for a long time, assuring that the retired teachers will receive their benefits is questionable.  This will probably prompt federal assistance.  When the conditions in the large cities an states present a major crisis, the likelihood that the federal government will bail them out with printing press money is assured.  The only question then will be the value of the dollars they receive.

Even with the mess we have created with our schools, we are not on the verge of undoing our public school system or wisely reforming it.  There is no serious effort to deal with the problem of vastly inefficient, underperforming schools.  In reality the whole system may self-destruct by both poor performance and runaway costs.  The grandiose structures built by so many government-run schools resulted from the huge subsidies from the federal government -financed by debt and outrageous taxes.

If government schools were maintained by local control, the problem of monopoly control of education for the entire school-age population would be greatly reduced.  The “owners” of the school could be the local school boards, which would set curriculum and discipline standards and taxes.  This solution is not perfect, but it is vastly better than a Washington- based economic czar using the educational system for its own agenda.  At least we have the Internet and the thirst for truth that no government is big enough to silence.

The post Education System of Common Core appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Government vs Liberty https://buzzazz.com/government-vs-liberty/ Fri, 18 Mar 2016 15:41:15 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=3337 The Struggle Between Government and Individual Liberty One of the biggest quandaries that our country faces is the overwhelming imbalance between powerful financial groups and the common man who struggles to survive and compete for economic and business survival. Powerful special interests rule, and there seems to be no way to fight against them.  While […]

The post Government vs Liberty appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
The Struggle Between Government and Individual Liberty

One of the biggest quandaries that our country faces is the overwhelming imbalance between powerful financial groups and the common man who struggles to survive and compete for economic and business survival.

Powerful special interests rule, and there seems to be no way to fight against them.  While the middle class is being destroyed, the poor suffer, the justly rich are being looted, and the unjustly rich are getting richer.

The wealth of the country has fallen into the hands of a few at the expense of the many.  Some say this is because of a lack of regulations on Wall Street, but that is not right.  The root of this issue reaches far deeper than that.  While Wall Street and corporate interests are a problem, there is a far more fundamental problem with the way our economy is managed.

Understanding how governments always compete with liberty and destroy progress, creativity, and prosperity is crucial to our effort to reverse the course on which we find ourselves.

The contest between abusive government power and individual freedom is an age-old problem.  This is also a problem that has a solution, and it dates back to the United State’s Founding Fathers principles and reasons for revolution.

The concept of liberty, recognized as a natural right, has required thousands of years to be understood by the masses in reaction to the tyranny imposed by those whose only desire is to rule over others and live off their enslavement.

This conflict was understood by the defenders of the Roman Republic, the Israelites of the Old Testament, the rebellious barons of 1215 AD who demanded the right of habeas corpus (definition:  a writ requiring a person under arrest to be brought before a judge or into court, esp. to secure the person’s release unless lawful grounds are shown for their detention.), and certainly by the Founders of our country, who imagined the possibility of a society without kings and despots and thereby established a framework that has inspired liberation movements ever since.

It is understood by growing numbers of Americans who are crying out for answers and demanding an end to Washington’s dominance over the country and the world.

And yet even among the friends of liberty, many people are deceived into believing that government can make them safe from all harm, provide fairly distributed economic security, and improve individual moral behavior.

If the government is granted a monopoly on the use of force to achieve these goals, history shows that that power is always abused.

This is why the Libertarian Party platform, The Jeffersonian Institute and organizations like the Ludwig von Mises Institute are vital for the survival of this country.

Down the road, we will be opening the Jeffersonian Institute for educating individuals on the effects of government on economy and independence.

The post Government vs Liberty appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Trump Gets Jefferson’s Vote https://buzzazz.com/trumpsellingamericajefferson/ https://buzzazz.com/trumpsellingamericajefferson/#comments Thu, 17 Mar 2016 21:57:41 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=3309 Mr. Trump Extols Some Jeffersonian Virtues Jefferson is quoted as saying “Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.” One thing that cannot be argued about Mr. Trump’s over the rampart lifestyle is his willingness to act.  Statistically speaking, he is arguably the single most productive individual – […]

The post Trump Gets Jefferson’s Vote appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Mr. Trump Extols Some Jeffersonian Virtues

Jefferson is quoted as saying “Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.”

One thing that cannot be argued about Mr. Trump’s over the rampart lifestyle is his willingness to act.  Statistically speaking, he is arguably the single most productive individual – business wise – we have seen for numerous decades to be running for the Oval Office.

The past few months have not just been entertaining, they have also been full of fast paced action.  Now that the presidential race is down to a few stout horses, the heat gets hotter and the strongest will eventually survive.  It is easy to find good qualities in most every candidate, and of course bad ones too.  Trump gets hammered from all sides for speaking plainly about his disregard for Rosie O’donnell (whom I think is also funny) and others when she as a comedian has made quite a nice bit of loot by doing the exact same thing with others.  Oh the irony of it all.

Observing the never ending facebook posts from friends and acquaintances weighing in this political season has me quite spinny.  It’s an avalanche of mixed marketing, ideology and falsified information.  For me, it’s also just politics as usual upon the grandest stage in the game.  What I liked about Ron Reagan I also like about Mr Trump.  An overall consistent message is being drummed in that has been obviously well honed over decades of effort.  Reagan was giving similar presidential speeches as head of an actors union and prior to his being governor of California.  If I close my eyes and listen to footage of Trump testifying to congressional subcommittees on economics twenty five years ago – it’s the same message he’s putting forth now.

And for me, it stems around his willingness to act.  Yes he speaks impromptu and seems to be a honey badger when it comes to “political correctness” – well, I for one can certainly forgive those transgressions if he has the potential to help right the ship.  Business statistic wise, he’s in a league of his own.   And he does something else I’ve noticed of late – he builds confidence wherever he goes.

The world I work in has a lot to do with confidence. Without confidence, people don’t make purchases, travel, open businesses, invest, get educated and more.  Confidence is something he has volumes of and I believe it is sorely needed to emanate forward to those individuals that are the backbone of civilization.  The business builders, artists and dreamers.  They are the ones that lift the rest to new heights and its one thing to dream of prosperity without effort but I believe natural laws are in play and most all people I’m familiar with most certainly know that valuable goals and purposes can be achieved when accompanied with tremendous effort, smart planning and the correct environment to produce.

It would be pretty easy to dig into anyone’s closet and find more than a few skeletons, nobody of late has solid gold halo’s floating over the skulls.  So yes, he has numerous picadillos quite easy to attack.  But yes, he has solid production stats based upon his overwhelming willingness to act that I’d guess our beloved founding fathers would admire as well.

Looking forward to the next few months as the potential for a new era begins.  Selling America to America was a concept I first listened to back in the 60’s.  Rich Devos, the gregarious co-founder of Amway has a famous speech entitled “Selling America” you can still listen to at:

https://youtu.be/lsLSYbnddAY  –  Rich Devos’s “Selling America”

Since that time, I have only witnessed Ronald Reagan sell that concept better.  Until now that is – with the movement that can be called Donald Trump.  Trump has mastered the art of selling to the hard working people of America the ideals it was founded upon.  He does it with simplicity, repetition and confidence and a ocean load full of enthusiasm.  For me, it’s just what the doctor ordered.  For my Bernie loving friends, well I understand why they might not revel in his viewpoints but it does not mean I have to agree.

The post Trump Gets Jefferson’s Vote appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
https://buzzazz.com/trumpsellingamericajefferson/feed/ 1
Richard Branson’s Marketing Advice To His 25 Year Old Self https://buzzazz.com/richard-bransons-marketing-advice-to-his-25-year-old-self/ Sat, 12 Mar 2016 19:26:22 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=3269 Richard Branson another marketing genius I can remember watching Sir Richard a few years ago as he was competing hard core with Chicago’s own Steve Fossett to become the first person to circumnavigate our precious earth, in a hot air balloon. Seems like Steve had things going in his direction when I tuned in to a […]

The post Richard Branson’s Marketing Advice To His 25 Year Old Self appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Richard Branson another marketing genius

I can remember watching Sir Richard a few years ago as he was competing hard core with Chicago’s own Steve Fossett to become the first person to circumnavigate our precious earth, in a hot air balloon.

Seems like Steve had things going in his direction when I tuned in to a National Geographic special on Branson.  He was stuck in EXTREMELY foul weather somewhere near Iceland.  He and his illustrious ground crew were crammed together in a small shack waiting for the weather to break.  The scene reminded me of something one might find in an Everest climb.  Sour moods, extreme tiredness and a completely deflated attitude towards accomplishment of the goal at hand.

Except for Sir Richard – his was the only shining face in the video clip and it did not seem phony at all.  I watched mesmerized as he sat there and pumped enthusiastic “can do” words of encouragement to his crew, nothing but a positive we will prevail and accomplish our goal attitude.  It was truly inspiring to watch a billionaire in an extremely hostile environment as he changed the entire viewpoint of his team by simply knowing they would come out on top and infusing the karmic energy to do so.

Sir Richard and his kind are those rare individuals that truly reshape the world in a positive manner and I believe it all starts with attitude.

Attached is a link to a recent Richard blog post I discovered today.  It’s a wonderful letter written to himself – as a 25 year old – with all of the advices he would provide if had been able to look forward/backward in time.

http://bit.ly/1UorhbS

I hope you find it of value.

Keanan

The post Richard Branson’s Marketing Advice To His 25 Year Old Self appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Leonardo DiCaprio – Marketing Wizard for Mother Earth? https://buzzazz.com/leonardo-dicaprio-marketing-wizard-for-climate-change/ Tue, 01 Mar 2016 16:08:55 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=3085 Leo DiCaprio  wins an Oscar – new status expands his “Global Warming” cause marketing reach. No doubt, Leo is and has been one of the world’s leading actors for quite some time. His talent is obvious. Like other famous stars, and famous corporations, he has put a lot of energy into marketing various causes for […]

The post Leonardo DiCaprio – Marketing Wizard for Mother Earth? appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Leo DiCaprio  wins an Oscar – new status expands his “Global Warming” cause marketing reach.

No doubt, Leo is and has been one of the world’s leading actors for quite some time. His talent is obvious.

Like other famous stars, and famous corporations, he has put a lot of energy into marketing various causes for the greater good of humanity, not a seemingly bad thing for individuals or corporations to do.

With his top tier status, Mr. DiCaprio now has a platform voice to help make planetary change. His passion for cause marketing – climate change.  Below is this year’s acceptance speech and climate change marketing pitch.

I like Leo and believe he is quite intelligent and having his attention on this “HOT” issue can help move discussions forward.  Is he correct and an expert science based meteorologist providing quality solutions that can address the problem?  It does not appear so.

Bringing attention, funding and awareness to large scale issues is a good thing and helps those souls dedicating their lives to such issues. He should be applauded for his efforts, right or wrong.

Wal-Mart has the Children’s Miracle Network – Leo has planet earth…

With a net worth well over 200 million, the 41 year old Leo DiCaprio’s wealth affords him luxuries Robin Leach would drool over. Numerous high end homes, fancy cars and yes – private jet airplanes.

dicaprio-yacht

Similar to politicians telling us to not carry firearms while simultaneously surrounded by armed bodyguards, it makes it a bit more difficult to hear celebrities true messages when they are personally egregiously violating the very thing they extol.

After completing studies at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University and Arizona State University in business and aeronautical technologies, and as a licensed private pilot I feel confident to claim Leo’s personal carbon footprint is quite a bit above average…

dicaprio-private-jet

A few years ago, a South African acquaintance told me while filming Blood Diamonds, Leo rented one of her friends estates. She said her friend initially refused the offer from his minions, but then Leo himself actually arrived at her home and spent a few hours selling her into the idea.

blood-diamond-dicaprio

After his extended stay, he left the home in perfect condition and her friend feeling he was a truly remarkable, kind and caring person.  It’s nice to hear these off the beat anecdotes that verifies the public persona.

LIke all of us, apparently Leo just needed extra space for relaxation during breaks from hard work.

Now that he has won an Oscar – he is and always will be included in rarefied Hollywood air.This gives his cause marketing an even greater boost.

dicaprio-private-jet-002

Our company – Buzzazz.com – does cause marketing as well. Our choice has been to help support Human Rights activities that assist the world’s children becoming better educated to the dangers of drugs.  Please visit www.drugfreeworld.org for more info.

drug-free-world-at-radio-city

Not on the same grand scale as Wal-Mart or Leo DiCaprio, yet over the past 30 years, we too have invested time and money as best we can. Our actual percentage of gross sales in this area is probably much greater than them both. Yet since we do not have the same audience appeal, our effective reach is obviously not quite the same.

With his choice to loudly broadcast his cause awareness Leo can easily now become a target for being a giant of hypocrisy. Since I believe none are 100% perfect, I prefer to view Mr DiCaprio’s efforts as worth supporting.

There are a handful of basic ingredients required to keep sustaining human life. Too hot or too cold and we will end up extinct like big Sue the Dakota T Rex now “living” in a large Chicago Museum…

I grew up in the Chicago area on a small lake in the farmlands of Indiana.  Summers in the water, winters on top of the ice playing hockey.  Since the 60’s, the number of “hockey days” has greatly reduced.

other-climate-effects-EPA

Most of us are aware that there has been tremendous changes in the weather patterns over the past few decades.  Is it cyclical, quickly diminishing or simply part of earth’s normal patterns of change?  I’ll leave those decisions up to true experts.  But in the meantime, i’ll do what I can to lower my carbon footprint, and encourage others to do the same while simultaneously supporting good solutions that benefit us all.

goreleo

Now that Leo DiCaprio and Al Gore through their cause marketing efforts have helped all other people around the world become well aware of climate change, we simply need proper teamwork with expert leaders in this arena that can be properly funded and supported to create workable solutions all humanity can easily and quickly get behind.

The post Leonardo DiCaprio – Marketing Wizard for Mother Earth? appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Positive Marketing Evolves From Our Passions – John Travolta Helps Local Artists in Downtown Clearwater Florida https://buzzazz.com/positive-marketing-evolves-from-our-passions-john-travolta-helps-local-artists-in-downtown-clearwater-florida/ Tue, 21 Apr 2015 00:25:36 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=1566 John Travolta’s new movie premiere for “The Forger” at the Capitol Theater in downtown Clearwater Florida This past Saturday evening, those of us lucky enough to call Clearwater Florida our home were treated to some special Hollywood magic.  Mr. John Travolta was in town on the red carpet hosting a one night only event – at the historic […]

The post Positive Marketing Evolves From Our Passions – John Travolta Helps Local Artists in Downtown Clearwater Florida appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
John Travolta’s new movie premiere for “The Forger” at the Capitol Theater in downtown Clearwater Florida

This past Saturday evening, those of us lucky enough to call Clearwater Florida our home were treated to some special Hollywood magic.  Mr. John Travolta was in town on the red carpet hosting a one night only event – at the historic Capitol Theater – launching his new motion picture “The Forger”.  As a Florida resident, John supports the movie industry within our state in big ways.  He is consistently helping to bring more awareness, funding and jobs to the area. It’s big business and he is one of its leading stars.

John Travolta, JT, Capitol Theater, Clearwater Florida, Marketing, Movie Star, Hollywood, The Forger, Keanan Kintzel, Cleveland Street District, Buzzazz, Wabamm, PR, Advertising

John Travolta, Capitol Theater, Cleveland Street Business District & Clearwater Florida

It was a magnetic evening downtown with a vibrant atmosphere full of enthusiastic arts supporters.  It was reported that including John and the other local contributors generous support, over fifty thousand dollars was raised to help expand the Martha P. Hoffman School Of The Arts.

You can find out more about their great program at www.rutheckerdhall.com/education.

Over the past few years, the downtown Cleveland Street District has been transitioning from a sleepy simple “Beach Byway” into something quite unique.  It overlooks the gorgeous Gulf Intracoastal and is within walking distance to one of the world’s most famous beaches.  Winter the dolphin lives here too!  Nestled near the Town Hall Bluff you would be hard pressed to find a better sunset view than strolling westward on Cleveland street between the diverse selection of shops and restaurants towards the park, yacht harbor and beautiful Clearwater Beach bridge.  The atmosphere is starting to remind me of a scaled down version of my birthplace, San Diego California.

Although Saturday evening, it was all Hollywood.  Limousines, red carpets, movie stars, bright lights, large crowds, beautiful weather, exuberant fans…who could ask for more.  I’ve not had the pleasure of attending the Oscars, but this to me was like a short glimpse into that world.  Watching John mingle effortlessly with his adoring fans, endlessly posing for photos, signing autographs, giving hugs and genuinely happily being there was extremely refreshing to see.  What I was able to observe was someone passionately giving back to the art community from which he had come.  Clearwaters own Mayor Mr. George Cretekos was overheard to say “its another gem in the city’s crown.”

When a person’s passions and moral compass are lined up to “True North” like John’s seem to be, great things normally happen.  Most of us in business would pay handsomely for the kind of word of mouth marketing and PR this type of event creates. A positive buzz like this in our local media had normally been reserved for our water mammal friend down the street.  Paying for it directly somehow never works, what does seem to work is having a great service or product that is backed by passion with integrity.  With that combination in hand, the process of making something well known would seem to become a very simple endeavor.  If asked to speak for the community, I would say this event was a wonderful marketing coupe for us all.

Travolta told reporters “A lot of my friends have played the Cap,” “It sounds like a theater that’s inviting a lot of, in my opinion, very important artists who are doing quite well by it.” The Forger is available on DirecTV, with a limited theatrical and wide VOD release April 24. “It’s a wonderful film that also admires the arts within the subject and story line. I thought, wouldn’t it be wonderful to use this film to raise money for the arts in Clearwater?” Zev Buffman, president and CEO of Ruth Eckerd Hall that owns the Capitol, said Travolta’s event comes at a crucial time in the Hoffman school’s expansion. John told the audience “Thank you for being here, for supporting the arts. I had the privilege of growing up in a family that supported the arts … but not every family has that advantage. Tonight, you are helping … other young people to become artists of their dreams, who didn’t have the advantage I had as a child.”

It’s fairly undeniable that living legend Mr. John Travolta has forged one of the most successful Hollywood careers of all time.  Like many, my earliest recollections of his prowess started with his iconic “sweathog” character Vinnie Barbarino from ABC’s  hit show Welcome Back Kotter. My older sister had gigantic posters of 70’s stars David Cassidy, Bobby Sherman, Donny Osmond and of course Mr. John Travolta. Back then, there was three main networks along with a couple minor local stations to choose from and Welcome Back Kotter was most definitely one of the 70’s highest ranking TV shows that everyone watched every single week.  Of course, John’s movie career took off from there to a point only Boeing 707 aircraft only fly.  It even reached the zenith where the worlds most beloved Princess was requesting a dance. Thank you Mr. Travolta for all you have done to make downtown Clearwater, the Cleveland Street Business District and the world itself a more enjoyable place to live.

The post Positive Marketing Evolves From Our Passions – John Travolta Helps Local Artists in Downtown Clearwater Florida appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Web Design, Clearwater Florida & Buzzazz https://buzzazz.com/web-design-clearwater-florida-buzzazz/ Mon, 09 Mar 2015 14:48:53 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=1339 How key is web design to a Clearwater Florida advertising campaign? When we started building websites back in 1999, it was not a degreed program at every college, junior college, trade school and online school around the world.  Factually, we had to find creative people we could train in basic html or Microsoft Front Page just […]

The post Web Design, Clearwater Florida & Buzzazz appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
How key is web design to a Clearwater Florida advertising campaign?

When we started building websites back in 1999, it was not a degreed program at every college, junior college, trade school and online school around the world.  Factually, we had to find creative people we could train in basic html or Microsoft Front Page just to do the work.  Although we launched prior to Google (they had a smarter strategic plan) the future was not all that plain for anyone to predict.  Some (Google, Facebook, Amazon, etc.) have done better than others.

clearwater florida web design, seo, websites, buzzazz 645 cleveland street, internet marketing, online marketing

We certainly did not manifest Google’s acumen, but we also did have foresight beyond most as we were able to see the fast evolution of the web and throw our hat into the ring well before most.  Our Chicagoland telecom parent company had enjoyed a very solid run having helped hundreds of thousands of customers enjoy low cost long distance over a couple decade time span.  As the telecom industry morphed into cellular technologies, our ownership group decided it was time to transition into something a bit more creative that had more to do with results than costs.  Hence, the decision to spawn Buzzazz Internet Marketing and Web Design.

Our first few years consisted of much trial & error accompanied with a large amount of time and money investments.  In 1998 we had purchased around $10,000 worth of websites from three different companies, just to see what was available.  Dissatisfied with the results, and knowing our telecom days were nearing an end, we launched Buzzazz and had one of our top telecom executives run the operation.  Since starting our business careers back in 1987 my brother and I have always had a very strong direct sales bent.  This experience helped as we were immediately able to produce a better product than what we had found within the marketplace as we understood that a website was simply an advertisement that needed to communicate a strong message to a potential client from someone’s business.

Watch this Matt Cutts (Google Exec) video on Key Points of Web Design:

The next few years found us in high demand and we were able to sell and deliver several thousand websites all across the world.  In 2005 we started the process of moving our main web design operations from Chicagoland to Clearwater Florida.  Even then, surprising as it might sound, the yellow page phone books still had a very large foothold on the local advertising scene.  But in the past seven years that foothold has washed away like baby chihuahua standing in the middle of a wash basin during a flash flood…

As we can all see so clearly in the rearview mirror – the combination of the internet, websites, SEO and other electronic technologies have either totally destroyed or completely altered modern day print media.  I don’t know if this is good or bad, for me I still prefer paper over plastic. books over kindles and large wooden outdoor billboards over electrons but most certainly the metrics don’t lie and we all know electronic advertising cannot be ignored.

clearwater florida web design, seo, websites, buzzazz 645 cleveland street, internet marketing, online marketing

So if you are a business in the modern world, the obvious point being made is that a website and web design are now part and parcel to a advertising campaign.  In clearwater florida – or any other place in the world – a business will now encounter a large confusion when locating different “design” companies and their respective viewpoints.  The advertising world is filled with opinions, false information and black hat technologies.  Thank goodness the main players seem to have created a fairly ethical playing field with most of the basic rules of the game put forth for all – with moderate study – to understand.

As our company moved to Clearwater Florida and our staff changed from Soldier Field Tailgators into Jimmy Buffett beach combers, so to did our overall flow change from strictly web design advertisements into offering services akin to full scale advertising agencies.  As time moved forward the business of schools started to churn out “expert” marketing web designers faster than law school factories, and we all know what effect that has created within our world.  Our potential customers started to value the viewpoints of these young “experts” with a few hours of design training under their belt more so than companies like Buzzazz that were founded on a bedrock of sales and marketing experience.

In some ways this has made our jobs easier and our commitment stronger, because the need for intelligent, ethical and sound strategic planning around a companies advertising and marketing campaigns has never been needed more.  So is web design and a website still a key element for a Clearwater Florida (or any other location) business advertising campaign – the answer is still yes!  The world of advertising is most definitely an art and requires aesthetics throughout to grab attention of potential customers, patients or clients so they can take that short moment to consider the message being put forth.  A well designed website from a top web design company can still pay dividends, perhaps more than ever.  Above that lies a well thought out advertising strategic plan.  Most Fortune 500 companies allocate on average around 15% of their gross sales to a healthy marketing budget.  We have discovered most small businesses invest less than 1% and rely mainly upon their good works to spread the word.

Even though it requires work, what doesn’t, a well made web design and website incorporated into a strong strategic plan for advertising will continue to help make your company well known to new potential clients.  Even Coke, Apple, Budweiser and Kellogg’s continue to advertise so for the near future, it’s going to stay part of our culture and if I could impart any shift in your viewpoint it would be to consider reviewing your own thoughts as to how important and how much should be invested into this area of your business.  In the past few months, our own company leadership has made the decision to 10X the amount of time and money we had been investing in our own advertising – putting our own money where our mouth is seemed to be the right thing to do.

The post Web Design, Clearwater Florida & Buzzazz appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Nashville Tennessee is now a Music Marketing PR Bonanza! https://buzzazz.com/nashville-cats/ https://buzzazz.com/nashville-cats/#comments Fri, 06 Mar 2015 18:37:04 +0000 https://buzzazz.com/?p=1292 Nashville and Advertising in Music Nashville is gaining quite a bit of attention these days as a media, marketing and advertising hub so I thought I would give you a report from the ground level. In the 6 years that I have been here, date coincident with the rise of Taylor Swift, I take no […]

The post Nashville Tennessee is now a Music Marketing PR Bonanza! appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
Nashville and Advertising in Music

Nashville is gaining quite a bit of attention these days as a media, marketing and advertising hub so I thought I would give you a report from the ground level. In the 6 years that I have been here, date coincident with the rise of Taylor Swift, I take no credit for this.

I have seen the branding of this town move from the Corntry Music Capital to a multi-cultural melting pot of Alternative-Pop and Soulful stylings of artists such as Jack White, Beck, Robert Plant set up camp to find their Nashville roots. I can’t tell you how many times my auto-mechanic, waiter, cashier doubles as a session musician or sound engineer for you know who.

The city is like being on the trade routes in ancient times where cultures meet and out pops “Shake it Off” and Victor Wooten plays with the Nashville Symphony while Jack White hosts Loretta Lynn at his stadium show at LP Field. I would wager there are more song writers here per capita here that anywhere. Sounds interesting?

The post Nashville Tennessee is now a Music Marketing PR Bonanza! appeared first on Buzzazz Business Solutions.

]]>
https://buzzazz.com/nashville-cats/feed/ 4