December 2004, Volume: 7, Issue: e/12, ISBN 1527-5175

~~~Happy Holidays from all of us at Blane, Canada Ltd. We have enjoyed being a small part of your lives in 2004 and look forward to working together in 2005 and beyond - Tammy, John, Greg, Gino, Andrew, Nancy & Eric. "The habit of giving only enhances the desire to give"... was long ago written by Walt Whitman and remains true today. At this time of year we encourage everyone to select a charity or organization which needs your talent, your resources, or just plain support.

~~~Fast 50 Nominee... "At a time when the public thinks the "tech world" simply collapsed, it is refreshing to see -- and write about -- a tech entrepreneur who is not only successful, but has made others successful as well." This quote comes from Terry Savage, Chicago SunTimes financial columnist, writing about Eric Canada and the Blane, Canada Ltd. team, nominated for consideration by the editors of Fast Company magazine for the Fast 50 Award by Greg King, Georgia Institute of Technology. The Fast 50 is Fast Company magazine's annual readers' challenge, a worldwide search for ordinary people doing extraordinary things. Share your opinion. http://www.fastcompany.com/fast50 Click "Search 2005 Entries" from the menu on the left. Search for Name: Canada or Company: Blane, Canada Ltd.

~~~Congrats Ron... Ron Kitchens was also nominated for Fast Company's 2005 Fast 50 Award! "Ron has brought vision and passion to bringing jobs to Corpus Christi. Ron's energy is the sparkplug to an important Corpus Christi turnaround; not only in building the tax base but in civic pride. By accomplishing what he has, in a relatively short amount of time, Ron is recognized as a leader in the state! Take no prisoners, Ron!" Jeff Moseley - Austin, TX. Share your opinion. http://www.fastcompany.com/fast50 Click "Search 2005 Entries" from the menu on the left. Search for Name: Kitchens or City: Corpus Christi.

~~~What are the odds... two economic developers and their organizations would be nominated for Fast Company's Fast 50 Award in the same year. Two firsts for economic development! Congratulations Ron & Eric!!!

~~~WOW!!! "... you make it look too easy : )" evaluating the Synchronist's new advanced reporting tool, Synchronist xTool Reporting. The xTool TM is in final testing for release to all Synchronist Users. A User previewing the xTool commented, "You literally just saved me hours of mind numbing number crunching (and I know cause I had to do it last month). Thanx for such a great product!  JD English, IL

~~~"With a stunning 57% growth... in the number of companies planning to add new products in the next three years, there will be challenges within the workforce." Blane, Canada Ltd.'s new study of business issues shows clearly that companies will have more difficulty in the near future finding the workforce needed to be competitive in a global market." The evidence comes from the analysis of information collected by 17 economic development professionals (listed in the report), who in some cases invested years of hard work to gather the raw material. Data is drawn from 5,694 executive interviews in 343 communities. Economic development professionals were instrumental in conducting this research. Their communities benefit and the profession takes a giant step forward as a result of their personal and professional leadership. Check out the report and share it with others interested in workforce and business retention. Some Synchronist Users have already scheduled meetings with their Governor and Workforce leadership. Powerful leadership. Check out the report: "Workforce Health: Emerging Challenge Faces Workforce" http://www.blanecanada.com/workforce_health_rpt.pdf

~~~Branding... Yes, we have bashed branding in our courses because it is highly ineffective in economic development for a number of reasons.

Discussion at the mid-November Conference Board event addressed the biggest change in marketing was on branding. "It has become evident that branding as we know it is changing radically. No longer do executives come to talk about their newest TV campaign or their newest catchy tagline. They talk about how their brand relates to their customers." If only economic development professionals could get to this point. We have talked about this for years at our advanced marketing courses. Now business executives, even those in the consumer world, are coming around to the weaknesses of branding. Source: Inside 1 to 1, Peppers & Rogers Group, http://www.peppersandrogersgroup.com

~~~Master Marketer Winner!... The Hampton Roads Economic Development Alliance (HREDA) is the recipient of this year's Blane, Canada Ltd. 2004 Master Marketer Award. Congratulations to Jones Hooks and his team for excellent mid-game strategy and flawless implementation!

~~~"Teams at the Top... Unleashing the Potential of Both Teams and Individuals" written by Jon R. Katzenbach is on Harvard's Business Essential Series. Pick up a copy as a companion during holiday travels or locate more details via Google.com. The book is recommended by engineer, Jay Basso, at Black & Veatch, Chicago.

~~~We're interested in knowing... what monthly magazines you recommend for economic development professionals to read. We'd also like to hear what good book you recommend for people who are always in pursuit of expanding their minds. nblane@blanecanada.com

~~~Speaking of reading... we recommend you devote at least one hour weekly to diverse reading... not just your typical reading material.

~~~You might have noticed the decreased attendance at trade shows... Medill News Service reported 10/1/04 a national sales manager said that companies had to be selective which trade shows to attend since attendance was off.

~~~While on executive visits... what questions do you ask? "If you could have one supplier next door to you, who would that be?" Source: R.J. Baker, Elkhorn Valley, NE

~~~OK, OK... Take a deep breath. Yes, the pressure is building, but there are still 3 days before the marketing presentation you agreed to do for your state development association. Draw on the resource other economic developers do, Blane, Canada Ltd.'s 'ED Marketing Letter' archive. The archive includes thousands of tips and ideas on economic development marketing and business retention delivered in over 75 monthly installments. Our only request is acknowledgement. Credit us. http://blanecanada.com/newsletters/frameset_archive.html

~~~Caution... is not a virtue in marketing. Without calculated risks, little of value can be achieved!

~~~How do site selection firms find their clients?... Networks and networking. They have the same target audience we have in economic development. However, the only common marketing technique is networking. What does that tell you about the relative effectiveness of all the fancy marketing techniques your agency is suggesting? What was your network marketing strategy for '04? What should it be in '05 ?

~~~Keeping up?... A source of highly specialized newsletters is found in a catalog titled, "Industry Research & Technical Market Analysis". The reference book covers a diverse range of topics including advanced materials, thin and thick films, smart textiles, nanomagnetics, instruments, plastics, and the environment. Source: Business Communications Company, http://www.bccresearch.com

~~~"It's not a bad economy... it's a different economy," says Eric Davis, KY at Blane, Canada Ltd.'s "Advanced Business Retention" seminar in October.

~~~"Don't get caught spending 80% of your time... on 20% of your investment potential," stated Ben Snow at the same conference.

~~~Trade shows to be aware of... INTERPHEX - pharmaceutical discovery and manufacturing, technology suppliers, manufacturing and packaging, www.pharmacongress.net METALFORM - manufacturers and distributors of products, equipment, and services for the radio, TV, video telecommunications business, www.metalform.com NATIONAL HARDWARE SHOW - manufacturers of hardware products, hand & power tools, electrical & plumbing materials, housewares, building materials, garden equipment, auto aftermarket products, www.nationalhardwareshow.com CORENET - corporate real estate network, www.corenetglobal.org GSE INTERNATIONAL EXPO - aviation ground support equipment, services, and solutions, www.gseexpo.com ADVANCED CERAMICS & COMPOSITES - thermal barrier coatings, fuel cells, semiconductor and wireless communications applications, www.ceramics.org HANNOVER FAIR (Germany) - April 11-15, automation & technology; European Engineers' Forum will meet one day simultaneously, www.hannovermesse.de/homepage_e?x=1

~~~Alexa Toolbar helps track site information... Did you ever wonder how your Web site compares with others? How much traffic do you get, how fast is your site, what other sites do your visitors visit, what are the top sites, what do people search for?  All this and more is accessible through the Alexa Toolbar.  Simply visit http://www.alexa.com and click the "Free Toolbar" button. In one toolbar you will have access to site info, traffic rank and related links. This is a great tool to track and enhance your Web presence.

~~~Leadership capital... "Your leadership capital is always at stake, always in flux and always a key factor in determining your success in any endeavor." Call it your political capital, soft capital, or people skills. It boils down to four central elements: character, competence, contacts, and creativity. Having money, hard capital, is important to success; however, having both hard and soft capital is an unbeatable combination. Are you investing in your "leadership capital?"  Quote: Christopher Hoenig, "Total Leadership," CIO magazine, 4/15/03.

~~~Integrating and Linking Dashboards, Scorecards, and Six Sigma... Why is a quality management strategy important to any organization? It builds a measurement system based on linking financial and non-financial resources, ultimately creating a platform for success by creating opportunities to optimize performance. Integrate continuous improvement with continuous measurement. Source: "Philosophy from International Quality and Productivity Center"

~~~"Have I told you lately how much our entire business development team enjoys your newsletter?  Awesome insights - you rock.' THANK YOU, John Krug, Orlando, FL!

Blane, Canada Ltd.
1506 Cadet, Suite 100
Wheaton, IL 60187-7380
ph 630.462.9222
fax 630.462.9210

info@blanecanada.com