My friend and colleague Geff Sellers has branched out to a new business venture.
He’s starting a new service called G:Lux at Dylan’s barbershop in the Arcadia district of Phoenix. Forget what you know about Barbershops. Forget the dog-eared pin up magazines, peeling linoleum, wall calendars from 1952 and no women to be found. Instead, think Chelsea or SoHo New York, where glass and exposed brick meet modern garage doors that roll up to usher in Phoenix’s beautiful weather. Think urban hip lofty chic, where you can get a cappuccino from La Grande Orange or a glass of wine and a board of bruschetta from Postino and then stop by for more than the expected trim-and-go. Dylan’s pulls out all the stops for both men and women for everything from a quick hair cut to a lingering style consultation, cut color and style. Skincare and oxygen facials are an unexpected surprise. Or if you’re a guy, you can still expect the same affordable barber cut, style and shave.

I like things that honor tradition yet bring a new and fresh approach. Things that are beyond what is usual and better than what is expected. Congratulations to Geff and to all the entrepreneurs out there who inspire us.

Tony A came up with a fun idea to promote CT on Facebook.  We’ve asked FB fans of Community Tire to tell us their favorite (G-rated) back seat sweetheart story.  One winner each day will get a free oil change.  That guy is always thinking!

For my Jewish friends, today starts the beginning of a new year. Sort of paraphrasing what I’ve heard before, I think a great way to start any year is to remember:

Each of us, is a piece of this world, a part of the whole package, individually not very important. So it’s not about what we think we deserve, it is about what we can give and what we can share, that’s when you become significant as a piece of the whole.

Give your time, your energy and your talent (when you can and even to the point it hurts) and you will be surprised at the impact you have.. Whether it’s you personally or your company. If you do it without thought for what you will receive in return, everything you ever wanted comes to you in time.

What kind of footprints are you leaving?

Yesterday I took a poll about a door hanger design for a client. Yes, believe it or not doorhangers are actually delivering great results for my retail clients, followed closely by social media.

You’ve seen those door hangers at home, waiting for your notice before one of two futures: the recycle bin or hanging on the fridge until you make a purchase decision. The point is, it needs to be memorable and clever enough to be picked up and turned over.

Take a look at the design below and click on it to reveal its back side.
What do you think? Be sure to look at it before reading on.

Click the image to see it's backside-placeholder graphic from dreamstime.com

Our idea was to create something funny and completely unrelated to auto repair.  It’s ridiculous, but in a good way. We’ve received a mixed reaction.  Nearly 75% like the concept and the humor and would turn it around if they found it on their door.  That’s a good number in our opinion. If 75% of 5,000 turned it around and found it clever and at least half were interested and 1% ready to make a buying decision today the ad would have paid for itself and generated a return on investment of nearly 8%…pretty darn good.

Congratulations to our friends, clients* and colleagues who were listed to the Phoenix New Times Best of Phoenix List.

Local First’s Small Wonders Map (Kimber Lanning is our inspiration)

CenPho.TV

Nate Anderson — Ear Candy Productions

The Clarendon Hotel

Urban Cookies*

Oliver & Annie

Frances

haus Modern Living

Sinkweeds

Smeeks

Ticoz Resto-Bar*

The Parlor Pizza

Fez

Gallo Blanco Cafe’ (Tony A. eats there almost everyday)

SideBar*

Postino on Central (Troy is our favorite bartender)

Red Hot Robot (Jason we knew you would get this!)

Once again our new media guru, Tony Arranaga, is out in the field producing great social media for our clients.  Here he visits with Chef Robert Gonzalez at Babaloos Cuban Cafe who describes this tasty dish.

Thanks Tony……er where is the sample you brought back to the office?

It’s still hot here in Arizona and I’m anxiously awaiting that to change. Fall is absolutely my favorite time of year. Perhaps it is because my birthday is in October and my mother always created an amazing Halloween themed party for me every year. I’ll never forget the cake that took on the flavor of that plastic skeleton though Mom!

I love it when e-newsletters provide some real value. The following is a list of the best autumn leaves drives in the United States, provided by Vacation Rentals By Owner and borrowed to share with you too. (Though we found relevant sites and provide links here) Enjoy!

Park Loop Road – Acadia, ME
Mohawk Trail – Berkshire Mountains, MA
Brockway Mountain Drive – Upper Peninsula, MI
Kancamagus Highway – White Mountains, NH
Delaware Water Gap Scenic Drive – Poconos, PA
Cape Breton Trail – Nova Scotia, Canada
Coconino National Forest All Around Peaks Loop – Flagstaff, AZ
Mt. Baker Scenic Skyway – Bellingham, WA to Mt. Baker, WA
San Juan Skyway – Durango, CO to Ouray, CO
Skyline Drive- Front Royal, VA to Cherokee, NC
Blue Ridge Parkway – Shenandoah Valley, VA to Smoky Mountains, NC

Arizona Businesses Declare September 17th the Day Recession Ends

Thousands of Entrepreneurs, Marketers to Say Goodbye to Recession with Biggest Event in US to Mark End of the Longest Downturn Since Great Depression

There are a lot of smarter people out there than us that have been talking about the end of the recession

We felt like it’s time to officially draw the line in the sand and begin the next chapter with a bang.

Better times are right around the corner

It’s time to officially kick it off!

Phoenix, AZ (PRWEB) September 9, 2009 — Calling all optimists: America’s worst recession since the 1920s is just about over. And thousands of people in the Phoenix metro area are gathering on September 17, 3:30-8:30pm to collectively take a sigh of relief and say goodbye to what has been the longest recession since the Great Depression. Organizers bluemedia and F1 Race Factory invite all entrepreneurs, marketers, small businesses and large from across industries to attend the End of Recession Party.

The National Bureau of Economic Research, the official judge of when recessions begin and end, says the 21-month recession that started in December 2007 bottomed out last month. The End of Recession Party puts a line in the sand and ushers in the post-recession wave, setting the stage for a strong 2010 as this economy turns around.

“There are a lot of smarter people out there than us that have been talking about the end of the recession,” explains Jared Smith, founder and president of bluemedia and the organizer behind the event. “We felt like it’s time to officially draw the line in the sand and begin the next chapter with a bang.”

The End of Recession Party, the brainchild of Smith and his marketing team at bluemedia, a Tempe, Ariz.-based large format graphics firm, will play host to thousands of key players in the greater Phoenix for righteous networking of epic post-recession proportions. F1 Race Factory, a client and strategic partner of bluemedia is the ideal venue for speeding towards the recovery with this remarkable event.

Smith and his clients know first-hand how the recession can impact business. Bluemedia, an Inc 5000 company, whose business of signage and vehicle graphics, like many other businesses, felt the sting of slower demand for its large format printing products–until two months ago. Now the growing company officially claims the end of the recession and invites a few thousand of their close friends and clients in the business community to come out, celebrate and share some of their recent victories and focus on an optimistic future.

Arizona businesses are encouraged to post their recession-smashing anecdotes from the past year to our Facebook event page or bluemedia using event hashtag #RecessionRIP.

Attendees will be able to network, race European style ProKarts on the two quarter mile tracks, play billiards, take part in the Phoenix International Raceway Pit Crew Challenge, play arcade games, get photos taken in 1920’s costumes. Additionally, guests will nosh on food provided by Rubio’s and MOJO Yogurt, and sip adult beverages available at one of three themed bars or the VIP Trackside Lounge. A prize raffle will be held benefiting St. Joseph the Worker, a Phoenix-based nonprofit that assists homeless, low-income and other disadvantaged individuals in their efforts to become self-sufficient through permanent, full-time employment. Prizes include ASU football tickets; overnight stays at the Hotel Valley Ho, Indigo Hotel, and Aloft Hotel; Harkins Theatres; and Diamondbacks tickets.

“Better times are right around the corner,” said Smith. “It’s time to officially kick it off!”

Learn more about the event www.recessionendstoday.com

Event Details
Date: Thursday September 17th
Time: 3:30 – 8:30
Cost: No cost to attend
Location: F1 Race Factory, 317 South 48th Street, Phoenix, AZ 85034
Includes: Prize raffle, plasma screens with success stories throughout, 1920’s themed entry and reception area and photo booth complete with old-style Great Depression-era costumes
RSVP: Facebook event page

Resources:
Blog
Twitter
Twitter Hashtag: #RecessionRIP

About bluemedia
bluemedia is a leading provider of design and printing for use in vehicle, large format and environmental graphic applications for B-to-B and B-to-C organizations. An internationally recognized, award-winning company with a proven track record in the large-format graphics industry, bluemedia aims to transform the marketing industry through its innovative, customized solutions that overlap across a multitude of mediums. Through its combination of cutting-edge technology, nontraditional approach to ideas and design expertise, bluemedia helps companies get noticed and grow market share through highly relevant communications. Headquartered in Tempe, Ariz., bluemedia’s clients include: Coca-Cola, Wells Fargo, Jobing.com, Arizona State University and Clear Channel Communications. For more on bluemedia visit www.bluemedia.com.

About F1 Race Factory
F1 Race Factory is The Ultimate Adrenaline Rush. Combining America’s largest indoor kart racing facility with high speed European karts, two quarter mile tracks, a Trackside Bar and Grill, meeting rooms, billiards, an arcade, rock climbing walls, & the Phoenix International Raceway Pit Crew Challenge. F1 is open 363 days a year for both the general public and private group events, with special extended hours of operation for groups, including adrenaline-packed corporate outings and team building events. F1 stands out as premier location for a good time in Phoenix for sure. www.f1racefactory.com.

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What should you do when a colleague’s employee is getting a reputation for being a “troll” online?  What’s a troll? It’s someone who consistently posts comments on blogs that are intentionally inflammatory, derogatory or full of hate-speech.  What would you do?

© Columbia Pictures

I had the lucky fortune of seeing “Julie & Julia,” last night. When I heard that Meryl Streep was cast as Julia Child I remember thinking, “I love Meryl but as Julia Child…mmmm, I don’t know about that.”

What an incredible performance by Streep. She crafted the character with all of the quirkiness, charm and wry humor that one remembers of Julia but she also brought an unexpected lustiness to her that was brilliant. And I loved her all the more for it.

On to the story.  Although the theme  was to parallel a journey by both characters on separate paths yet united by food and the contemporary character’s sharing of her journey through writing a blog, I found my self disappointed when the film bounced from Julia Child’s story to the present day story line. As sparking as Amy Adams is, I still wished the story was entirely about Julia.

Still, I am left with wonderful feelings for the film. It was one of those rare occasions where I honestly did not want the film to end. I fell in love with Streep’s characterization and wanted to know more about Julia Child’s adventures.

I felt both fulfilled and still hungry for more.

I believe I enjoyed the film on two different levels connected by a common thread. What I mean is, both Streep’s performance as well as the true nature of Julia’s personality could be distilled into one word: authenticity. Julia was about “I am who I am and that’s enough.” Streep dug into that and revealed it in a magically effervescent, genuine performance that could easily be turned out in a lesser actor’s hands as a one-dimensional or over-the-top.

Authenticity is a powerful thing.

Everyday, I celebrate authenticity with my clients.  I want my clients to project authenticity with great story telling.  Making promises that they can keep and telling the truth. As individuals we want to be moved, we want to be inspired and we want to feel important.

Those chords within us are only struck by authentic actions, and the resulting tone is pure, fulfilling and lingers long.