Madison+Main’s Chief Idea Officer Dave Saunders talks about the importance of a company or product’s name in the branding process. Case in point; no one know what a Slanket is, but the Snuggie sold almost $500 million dollars of product.
Read More →
Madison+Main’s Weekly Report: 10/3/14 – Time Flies When You’re Having Fun
Hey Folks,
This week’s Weekly Report comes to you from beautiful downtown Doswell, site of the State Fair of Virginia. Today also marks the 9th Anniversary of Madison+Main. On October 3rd, 2005, my friend and Art Director Scott Clark and I moved our two computers into a closet at the Advantech Business Incubator. Thanks to dozens of friends, colleagues, partners and clients, we have managed to grow to 14 employees. Along the way, we’ve had a lot of fun, but we’ve worked hard. So to reward ourselves, we took the day off, and did what every nine year old wants to do on his or her birthday… we went to the State Fair and ate some deep fried Snickers and almost lost them on “The Zipper”.
Monday, September 29th – The former Miss Molly Quarles, now Mrs. Molly Whitfield, was in the office this week, which made everyone happy. At the MMMMM (Madison+Main Monday Morning Meeting) there was lots of good news to share: Lindsey walked five miles to River City Diner for brunch , Jessica celebrated her Grandma’s 80th birthday in Nags Head, and the Alberta Smith Sharks scored their first touchdown of the season. It’s been a tough season for the Sharks, going 0-4 so far, but I consider it a victory since 13 out of 17 players have never played football before, no one has been seriously injured and only one player quit the team.
…Click here to view the full article.
Read More →Madison+Main’s Weekly Report: 9/26/2014 – Familiar Faces
Hey Folks,
As I rapidly approach another birthday, I realize that my short term memory is fading. I’ve always had a good memory. In the past, I’ve had the ability to recall names, numbers, and lots of other useless statistics, and above all, I never forget a face. I may forget a name from time to time, but I never forget a face. And this week I was fortunate to see lots of familiar faces…
Monday, September 22nd – On Monday afternoon, after a busy morning, we met with friend and partner Mark Creery, President of Data Directions. We always enjoy working with Mark on projects, because his team does a great job and they are committed to making RVA a better place to live, work, and grow. While he was here, we spoke about several new initiatives at the Greater Richmond Chamber. Mark was also among a select group of area business leaders who met with VCU President Dr. Michael Rao this week at the Westin Hotel. Dr. Rao is leading a series of discussions with business leaders on Richmond’s future. By the way, Dr. Rao is an active Twitter user, @VCUPresident. (But he has get 27,000 more followers to catch me.)
…to read the full article, follow this link.
Read More →Madison+Main: Weekly Report 9/19/14: 1st and Cary… Carrie… Karri… Kerri…
Hey Folks,
It was a busy week at the corner of 1st and Cary, and I was able to talk to my three of my favorite people. Madison+Main is hosting our 5th Annual Chili Cook Off on Wednesday, October 15thand our celebrity judges this year are: CBS6 Meteorologist Carrie Rose, Richmond.com Editor Karri Peifer, and 8News Anchor Kerri O’Brien. Be sure to RSVP for our biggest event of the year, when we turn Cary St. into Carrie/Karri/Kerri St. (We still have a few slots left for chili teams, so call Lindsey at 804-521-4141 soon if your company wants to enter the cook off.)
Monday, September 15th: Monday came too quick this week, as I “worked” all weekend. Yes, I attended a beer festival on Saturday and a wine Festival on Sunday and I have no right to complain. The inaugural Chesterfield Craft Beer Festival was somewhat hampered, somewhat by rain, but more than 1,000 crafty beer people made it out to support the Chamber. Did I mention that we rebranded the Chamber earlier this year? I’d love to get your feedback on the new logo and tagline… check it out here.
On Monday we had a very good meeting with our friends over at Commonwealth Autism. On another note, Commonwealth Autism received 86 donations at a whopping $7,280 during this week’s Amazing Raise.
…to read the full article, follow this link.
Madison+Main Weekly Report 9/12/14: The End of Regulation
Hey Folks,
When I watch a football game, the announcer warns about “the end of regulation” and viewers eagerly anticipate to find out who the winners and who the losers are. In business, “regulation” has a whole different meaning. Generally, regulation is designed to protect people from business, but somewhere along the way many in our government forgot that small businesses, like ours…and the ones we represent…are owned by people. Despite the fact that 98% of all business is small business (employing under 100 people), many in our state’s vast bureaucracy forget this.
I spent most of my week trying to salvage a state contract we have. Maybe it’s time that the Commonwealth of Virginia – which touts itself as a top state for business — cut out a couple of stupid regulations that are killing small businesses. #OnMySoapBox
Last weekend I was in sports heaven, watching NASCAR live at RIR and watching Virginia Tech bounce the Buckeyes on TV at the same time. I had a great time hanging out with our new client, Brian Walker from Riverside Turf. My son Jack enjoyed the game too, and it was a much-needed diversion following the Sharks‘ football loss earlier that day. #Heartbreaker
…to read the full article, follow this link.
Read More →