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The Amtower Report Volume 4, #50, December 28, 2005 This newsletter is only sent to those who request it. Sign up for your free subscription at http://www.FederalDirect.net and if you like this newsletter, please pass it along to your colleagues. To unsubscribe, see directions below. The newsletter is posted each Monday at www.FederalDirect.net, and the latest "Off-Center Observations" is on the home page. All back issues available at http://www.federaldirect.net/newsletterarchives.html)
Item: I would like to thank the readers of The Amtower Report for the constant flow of comments and suggestions, regardless of whether or not you agree with me. I also want to thank the 2,000+ people who have purchased my book, Government Marketing Best Practices. This has been another great year (our 21st) for Amtower & Company. Item: On February 23, I will be hosting the first Government Marketing Best Practices session in Maryland, at the Clarksville Ballroom in Clarksville, Maryland. This is not Clarksburg in Montgomery County; Clarksville in Howard County at the intersection of Rte 108 and Rte 32. See events below. Item: We launch www.GovernmentMarketingBestPractices.com as a member site next Monday, January 2, 2006. We will have forums (blogs) in the member-only section for small business, channel issues, catalog and commodity product sales and marketing, and more. The video from our October 12 Government Marketing Best Practices seminar is available to members, as is the audio from the November 9 B2G Catalog Summit. Sections of the next (book) edition of Government Marketing Best Practices will be posted as text or pdf files as they become available. The first member tele-seminar will be scheduled for the third week of January with Lisa Dezzutti of Market Connections. There will also be a separate member-only newsletter. All tele-seminars and newsletters will be archived for member access. Members will also be offered discounts on all live Amtower & Company seminars and Summits. This could be the best investment you make – for yourself and your company – in 2006. THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY: END OF YEAR COMMENTS I have just a couple of quick things to say at the end of 2005, comments on things I have written about this year. First, we have the Sound and Fury winner. In late 2004 and early 2005, rumors abounded about a mega-chain electronics store coming into the government market. In a speech at a major mid-west university, the CEO of Best Buy referenced hiring the best person in the market to head the effort. In the June 2 Government VAR magazine, Best Buy GovEd president Bill Shafley announced the pending Best Buy GSA Schedule. There were advertisements in the trade publications. The ads had a phone number at first, and no web site. When the web site finally launched it was (and remains) a one page web site with a phone number. While Best Buy did get a small percentage in the Market Connections IT buyers study this year, it has pulled its ads out of the government trade publications, and does not have a GSA Schedule. The Casablanca Surprise of the Year (as in Claude Rains being surprised about gambling at Rick’s): that Congressional representatives do favors for money. Some are more subtle than Representative Duke Cunningham or some lobbyists, but PACs, campaign financing laws, and a variety of ethically gray activities make you wonder if there was ever a moral high ground on Capitol Hill. While these were the biggie on my list, it was not alone. Several others, while deserving comment, are better left alone – for the time being. However, if I hear that some are still complaining about industry practices not being fairly applied as concerns them and their activities, these people and their issues could become fair game again. Finally, I would like to re-visit the Michael Brown/FEMA fiasco. I made some untoward comments on Mr Brown (former FEMA director) when I heard he opened a consulting shop specializing in disaster preparedness. For those who do not read the Washington Post, the Post recently reported (12/22/05) that in 2003 Mr Brown argued against taking certain functions away from FEMA. This occurred during the building of DHS, bringing together the 22 disparate agencies. Mr Brown argued that removing some functions from FEMA would result in FEMA being unable to perform its mandated duties during disasters. This proved to be prophetic. While Mr Brown may have been able to do more during Katrina, it appears as if he were judged to quickly - and harshly, for the FEMA lack of response. During this same time, the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs retained an image consulting firm (Landor Associates; do you think this work was bid?) to help manage the public perception of DHS, to develop a Brand. Apparently the agency hierarchy was more concerned with public perception than delivery, worried more about the color of uniforms and all DHS employees wearing a lapel pin than providing security. It is certain DHS executives that was deserving of the scorn directed at Mr Brown. To Mr Brown, who warned them early, in official memos, I offer my apology.
EVENTS WORTH ATTENDING Beware of the schlock vendors, producing minimal value events, events that eat your money with no significant return! The events listed below are among those I think are worth your time, money and effort. Just because an event is not listed below does not imply it is not worth attending. If you want my opinion on a specific event or producer, call me. January 19, ITAA's Base Realignment & Closure: Moving Forward with Information Technology, Ritz-Carlton Pentagon City http://www.itaa.org/es/events/bracinvite.htm January 25, 2006 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), Chantilly, Virginia In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com January 26, 2006 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), Chantilly, Virginia In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com February 2, 3rd Annual Strategies for Winning Government Contracts Matchmaker & Conference, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Sheraton Conference Center Burlington, VT http://www.vtsbdc.org/getcontracts.cfm February 15, 2006 NSA/OPS 1 Building (Day 1), Fort Meade, Maryland In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com February 16, 2006 NSA/OPS 1 Building (Day 2), Fort Meade, Maryland In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.comFebruary 22, 2006 NSA R&E Building (Day 1), Fort Meade, Maryland In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com February 23, GOVERNMENT MARKETING BEST PRACTICES – First Maryland Session – 10 Oaks Ballroom – Clarksville, Maryland www.FederalDirect.net February 23, 2006 NSA R&E Building (Day 2), Fort Meade, Maryland In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com February 28 - March 1, 2006 FAA IT/ISS Conference, Denver, Colorado www.fbcinc.com March 7-9, 2006: FOSE www.FOSE.com APRIL 19, 2006, Tower Club, Vienna, VA. Amtower & Company presents the one and only Amy Africa and THE ULTIMATE B2B WEB SITE MAKEOVER. For those of you who do not know Ms Africa, she is perhaps the most sought after web consultant in the world, and we have sixty seats available for her first ONE DAY session focusing exclusively on maximizing the impact of B2B and B2G web sites. www.FederalDirect.net/ultimatewebsitemakeover.html
As always, your comments, questions and suggestions are welcome.
Thanks The Amtower Report is published by Amtower & Company, and is written for companies targeting the government marketplace. The opinions expressed are those of Mark Amtower unless otherwise noted. Contact us at Amtower & Company, PO Box 314, Highland, MD 20777-0314 (301-924-0058). This material is copyrighted and may not be duplicated, reprinted or otherwise replicated without written permission of the publisher. Email subscriptions are free by request: sign up at www.FederalDirect.net |
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