WISCONSIN READY MIXED CONCRETE ASSSOCIATION CONVENTION HIGHLIGHTS
It was a quiet, refreshing week on the shores of Lake Monona, in Madison, Wisconsin. My adopted home base was the beautiful, Frank Lloyd Wright-designed icon, the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center, which housed the activities of the Wisconsin Ready Mixed Concrete Association’s (WRMCA) Annual Convention.
Key highlights of the convention included:
- A legislative luncheon with about 50 Wisconsin legislators in attendance
- The WRMCA Annual Meeting
- The Annual Producers’ Round Table Discussion
- The 29th Annual Concrete Design Award Banquet, which honored the construction teams of 24 extraordinary concrete construction projects in Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Convention speakers included:
- Doug Nielsen, Doug Nielsen Communications (Message: Take life by the helm!)
- Penny Giles, Common Sense Consulting (Message: Make customers feel valued!)
- John Hansen, National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (Message: Facilities and pavements built with cast-in-place concrete have less impact on global warming, toxicity, solid emissions, and energy consumption than competing materials, reducing the overall environmental impact of construction projects)
- Dave Gorwitz, Hal Harlowe & Associates (Message: Never be embarrassed to ask for your money!)
- and me (Message: Concrete is Not a Commodity!).
Bits of Frivolity
The Concrete Design Award Banquet presentation was packaged as a simulated live radio broadcast, in which I played a small role. We learned WRMCA Public Policy Director Erin Krueger is the consummate lobbyist/piano mistress; WRMCA Executive Director Pat Essie and WRMCA Technical Marketing Director Pat Bauer are the Lloyd Hamilton and Jimmie Adams of our generation; WRMCA Association Manager Courtney Olmsted and WRMCA Promotion Director Cherish Schwenn would thrive and prosper as freelance talent for TV commercials and public service announcements; and that I cannot sing (my family and members of our congregation already knew this).
Phillison Kieler, legendary WGLR radio quiz host, was the Master of Ceremonies for the Award Banquet.
Another funny thing … at the Annual Meeting on March 6, I received the 2007 WRMCA Man of the Year award, for “exemplary contribution, dedication, and leadership to the ready-mix industry.” I appreciate the honor and the chance to support the ready-mixed concrete industry in Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
Recharged and Ready to Market Like a Rock Star
I have been on the road since the last week of January, and won’t be back at my favorite computer keyboard until March 13. But the WRMCA Annual Convention was a refreshing break and I am ready to market like a rock star!
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Post Script
Doug Nielsen and Penny Giles are exceptional speakers with important messages for the construction industry. Though Doug did not say it outright, be aware marketing is key strategy for your business to “take life by the helm!”
As Doug points out, “tough times don’t last, tough people do.” Construction- industry “toughs” who not only last, but thrive and prosper through the tough times, have mastered the art of adding value for customers through marketing and sales savvy.