Vantage Point

Strategic marketing concepts and business observations. Small business start-up experiences.

Monday, September 05, 2005

60 MINUTES had a segment last night about alternative offshore medical care in Thailand. They interviewed a woman from Florida who had gone to Bumrungrad Hospital for hip surgery that has not yet been approved by the government here. The hospital looked beautiful and reportedly has quality, ono-on-one nursing care. Worth doing some research on this.

International Hospital - Bangkok, Thailand - Bumrungrad International

.: posted by Carol Gamel - Carol@GoldenStarFruit.com 2:31 PM

I received a catalog in the mail entitled FLOR. "Modular Floorcovering That Goes Everywhere" - nice looking carpeting tiles that come in different textures, colors, and designs. Worth a look - especially for the young and modern!

Modern, modular carpet tiles and area rugs for Do-It-Yourself ease - InterfaceFLOR

.: posted by Carol Gamel - Carol@GoldenStarFruit.com 1:01 PM

Sunday, July 31, 2005

Three blogs I want to look at in more depth -

Brand Noise

BrandShift

Igor

recommended by Fast Company

.: posted by Carol Gamel - Carol@GoldenStarFruit.com 4:29 PM

Sunday, June 12, 2005

I was in an internet forum yesterday that was discussing early retirement and living overseas. One posting referenced a mail forwarding service, www.boatmail.com. This company originally serviced people who cruised the globe in their boats and yachts but now also services people living outside the USA.

.: posted by Carol Gamel - Carol@GoldenStarFruit.com 1:02 PM

Tuesday, March 08, 2005

The St. Petersburg Times has been publishing a series of articles about the MLB Devil Rays. What went wrong

I'm not a sports fan, nor do I know much about baseball but some things just pop out as 'obvious' after living in St Pete for 7 years and reading the Special Reports the last 2 days. Clearly, the major objective of the organization is to pull some wins out of the magic hat and start building some momentum. But putting that aside, along with the location issue and the managing partner issue, the Devil Rays need a MAJOR overhaul in their marketing. MLB didn't get to where it's at by ignoring the market. Without customers, they have nothing (I think they can see that now). Nobody wants to feel ripped off and nobody wants to be treated poorly. But that keeps happening over and over and over.

People don't mind cheering for a losing team. But wouldn't it be more fun (and entertaining) if the team were more interactive with the audience and community. I mean, GIVE ME A REASON to go to a game. Maybe, just maybe, if they asked my to come cheer them on, I'd go. I like to support friends and neighbors. It feels like the Devil Rays only want me to come to a game so they can take my money. Boo! Don't take my money unless you can offer something in return. Since a win seems unlikely at this point, the team has to find other ways to give value back to the customers. Don't ever forget though - the customer is paying to see GREAT BASEBALL. Has somebody forgotten that????

It was dismaying to see the market survey results showing that many people think they are too old to go to a baseball game. Mr. Auker wants to advertise to moms in the community. I applaud that. How about some ad campaigns that show people having fun going to the Trop? Taglines like "YOU'RE NEVER TOO YOUNG TO LIKE BASEBALL" - "YOU'RE NEVER TOO OLD TO LIKE BASEBALL" - "YOU'RE NEVER TOO BUSY TO LIKE BASEBALL" - all with photos of people in the Trop having fun. For video, use real footage so that people can see themselves on TV and talk it up. For photos, again use real customers to add credibility. Involve the community. Involve your customers. Involve the players. Start getting some buzz!