Watching the mistake

July 17, 2012
Maitre d'

Very Fancy!

“Guess who is selling his bar and buying a 5 star restaurant” Tommy, my Sales Manager said to me. I was the General Manager of Deasy & Co at the time, a subsidiary of Guinness.

“Oh My God, you can’t be serious” I said to him “That will be a total disaster“. “I know, we all know ….it will never work”

One of our loyal customers who was running a good solid suburban bar had done a decent job with the place and he was made an offer to sell up. The offer was “too good to be true” and our customer was going to make a clear profit from the deal.

His plan was to buy and run this very successful five star, fine dining restaurant whose reputation had been built around a well known chef. He reckoned he could manage the purchase with the windfall from the pub sale and even be in a position to upgrade the restaurant premises with some support from the bank.

The problem as we all saw it was that our guy wasn’t exactly Mr.Sophistication and in truth he was the last person that we could imagine operating this 5 star restaurant. He always did well in the pub but that was with a very different, country type crowd.

My buddy Tommy was really close to him – should he have a strong word with him and advise him against his dream?

Our customer was determined, full of enthusiasm so maybe we were the ones that were wrong – who were we to say anything? If Tommy said something to him it could backfire and damage the professional friendship they had.

Shortly after the restaurant opened under the new owner we went there for a meal to support him. Our worst fears were realised as we had a poor meal and you could see that our customer, who was a really nice guy just wasn’t able for this level of fine dining. Maybe he was on a learning curve and it would get better?

Unfortunately within a year the place was shut, the “fine dining” reputation in tatters, he had lost huge money and the building was handed back to the bank and our customer had lost everything.

The crazy thing was that we all saw it coming ….

Would you have said something ?

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

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Posted in Business Start Ups, Hospitality, Marketing, Personal development, Uncategorized | 7 Comments »

Driving your Reputation

July 17, 2012

Smoking_while_driving

Sitting in traffic in the middle of town on a Monday morning my attention was drawn to the dirty branded van that had just cut in front of us.

The driver of the van seemed to be hanging his arm out the window and I noticed it was because he was smoking.

Two minutes later the cigarette butt went flying onto the road followed closely by a spit …lovely!

If you decide to brand your company vehicles make sure you let the driver know that it’s your reputation he’s driving around the place.

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

Fuzion are a Marketing & PR Company with offices in Cork and Dublin

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Posted in Brand Loyalty, PR, Staff training, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

“It’s a Long way to Tipperary”

July 14, 2012
Its a Long way to Tipperary festival

Everyone is Happy !

“Everyone is happy” we heard the old gentleman say to the person he was with as we walked past him on the street.

“Everyone is happy” he repeated, this time a little louder to make sure what he was saying registered with his buddy.

This was the main street in Tipperary town, and the “It’s a Long Way to Tipperary” Festival that our client , Tipperary Co-op were sponsoring was in full swing.

We had just left the Tipperary Co-op Hardware store, or Top Creamery as the locals know it and there was a great buzz with threshing, old kids games, people enjoying the BBQ and of course plenty of banter. I spoke to a friendly gentleman from Rossmore called Liam O’Dwyer who was giving a blacksmith demonstration – he had an incredible display of old signs and as part of this was an old “Death Penny” from World War 1 (I’ll tell you about that in a separate blog!).

In our stroll down the town the locals were in full spirits, stopping to chat and enquiring where we were from. A old woman stopped me and I had to sign a book that apparently promised her a dance later! We popped into a small shop that had a full display of war memorabilia including war posters and a full history of the iconic song. Once again we were overwhelmed by the friendliness and warmth of the people there. The immortal song was made famous during World War 1 by the soldiers all over Europe.

Making the whole festival (which was celebrating 100 years of the iconic song) really special and great fun was that many people in the town were dressed in costume from that era.

It's a Long Way to Tipperary

Altogether now ….

(Imagine the anniversary of this famous song passing without marking it in any way – in Fuzion we refer to this as “Never Wasting a Good Story” – there is a huge PR tip for you!)

When we arrived in the town we had parked at the other side and walked all the way through. There were vintage cars, old tractors and motorbikes, people dressed up, everyone posing for photos, posters and banners and a fabulous, genuine “feel good atmosphere“.

Before we left the town we popped into the Tipperary Co-op owned SuperValu, which had its own exhibitions, competitions and the team there joined in the spirit of the festival wearing clothes from that era as well – all except for Pierce, the manager of course!

When we were there we were chatting to the guys from Tipperary Co-op, Richard, Pierce and Tom. They were thrilled with how their sponsorship of the festival had worked out but more than that they explained how the festival seemed to “unlock” a sense of spirit and fun in the town that seemed to have disappeared over the last few years through a mixture or recession, bad weather and general worries.

Maybe, everyone took a step back and grabbed onto some old values from a time when life was a little simpler.

As the old gentleman had said ..”Everyone is happy“.

It was worth repeating.

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

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Posted in Entertainment, Hospitality, Ireland, Marketing, Positivity, PR, Tourism | 8 Comments »

Do we all need to be a Circus Act?

July 13, 2012
Circus Trick - Fuzion PR

Round of applause please!

On the last night of our holidays in Cuba we found ourselves watching a “circus” show as part of the entertainment that the resort puts on every night to satisfy all of the holiday makers including, young couples, newly weds, young families and older couples.

It must be a tough gig entertaining such a mixed crowd but this troop did really well. There were two really acrobatic guys who were skilled, flexible and strong as they worked a number of different routines.

There was a very attractive young woman (of course!) who was equally skilled with a mixture of acrobatics, operating a unicycle, juggling and joining in on some of the routines with the guys.

There was a older guy who was skilled with a whip, who could remove an item from your mouth with one lash and of course there was a Charlie Chaplin type character in an oversized suit with extra large shoes who joked, tripped, fell over, participating in the different tricks, adding humour in equal measure with getting the crowd involved in the show.

All of the performers as well as being really skilled at what they did were all very competent “showmen” (or women!).. for each trick, there was a moment of deliberate tension, a pose, a smile or some other crucial, perfectly timed gesture that gave that important cue to the crowd to applaud and fully appreciate the feats that they had just witnessed.

These crucial “show” elements transformed the demonstration of skills into a “wow” performance, which were the little pieces of magic that was needed to leave everyone knowing they had witnessed something extra special.

Art of the Pitch - Peter Coughter

Ready for the Show?

The circus reminded me of the simple lesson that Peter Coughter gave in his book “The Art of the Pitch”

Often the best plans never see the light of day..

When you are presenting your proposal to a prospect that you have put huge work into, always remember that’s it’s not enough to show that you are competent, skilled and can deliver what’s required.

You must deliver a performance to win the business… in his excellent book he tells you how!

Remember …. It’s Showtime!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

Fuzion are a PR firm with offices in Dublin and Cork that specialise in campaigns integrating traditional media with social media

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Deirdre – When does a business start?

July 8, 2012
Deirdre Waldron - Fuzion PR

Deirdre Waldron – Fuzion PR

Deirdre Waldron or Dee as most of you know her, started the Fuzion journey many moons ago.

She will admit herself that the very last job she had before she started Fuzion was with a newspaper in Kerry and it was literally nearly killing her!

She will tell you quietly that there were days she was feeling so miserable that she wished for a small car crash that would put her out of action for a while (with only minor injuries of course!).

Can you imagine, someone that talented being that miserable in their job – whatever was going on in that newspaper they managed to squeeze the life out of her and she eventually quit.

Even though there was a lot going on in her life Dee decided it was time to try things on her own and Fuzion was borne.

When I met her first towards the end of 2000 I was well impressed by her determination, her tenacity and her willingness to get results for her first clients, which included the Kerryman newspaper and some other businesses in the Kerry region. Within no time she had taken on an assistant and I watched her close hand at events and dealing with the media.

I could see the results she was achieving for her clients as a result of her talent and this incredible work ethic that she had picked up in no small way from her formidable mother Joan, who was quite an able businesswoman herself.

As the Marketing Director of the Rose of Tralee I witnessed her skilfully dealing with the local and national press and I watched her protect the girls and the eventual winner with the media. She worked tirelessly on this project  – and this was a voluntary role!

I clearly remember one day en route to Limerick listening to her on the radio cleverly defending and promoting the merits of the Rose of Tralee to Ray D’Arcy on national radio (in later years he went on to present the event – I think she left a lasting impression on him!) . This Cork boy was very impressed with the Kerry girl who had no idea how good she was.

Deirdre Waldron and Greg Canty - Fuzion PR

Fuzion 10 Year Party!

After some persuasion I convinced Deirdre of the attributes of  Cork and the opportunities that would be available to her and in late 2001 she packed her bags and Fuzion HQ had moved!

Since then I packed up my full time job and joined Deirdre in Fuzion and gradually we went from working from home to opening an office in Cork city and in the last few years one in Dublin. We carefully added more members and skill-set to the team despite it being a tough time for business and each of them have benefited from working with Dee in the same way that I have.

I have had an incredible journey and absolutely love the work we do in Fuzion and for that I have to thank Deirdre for making that decision to go it alone a long time ago ..

Thanks Dee, you’re a star!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

Fuzion are a PR firm with offices in Cork and Dublin

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Posted in Business Planning, Business Start Ups, Marketing, Positivity, PR | 4 Comments »

Are you doing Laps or going on a Journey?

July 7, 2012
Ballincollig Park, Cork

Laps or a Journey?

Often at weekends we meet our great friends Tommy and Joan Doyle down at the gorgeous Ballincollig Park in Cork.

It’s a huge facility with the River Lee flowing through it, it has football fields, river walks and the ruins from the Gunpowder Mills can be seen as you explore the different spots at the park.

When we go there myself and Dee like to take a full route around the park, moving from the first football field, along the river, exploring the fields further back and coming back via the river letting Bing (our four legged creature) to have a little splash and a drink.

We wander back via the main entrance and have a cuppa and a bun at the fabulous Cafe Chico (Margaret runs a terrific little business there). It’s a nice route and for the most part we don’t revisit any part of the park.

When we meet up with Tommy and Joan we always end up having an argument – Tommy is obsessed with doing laps!! I can’t stand it ….he is happy to do a particular walk at the start of the park and repeat it 10 times.

Tommy is a true Irish GAA legend, winner of 7 senior All Ireland Medals with Kerry, so I guess he spent a lifetime doing laps as part of his training, which is engrained into him (we have a funny friendship as I have zero interest in GAA – we started as workmates).

Sometimes we win the argument and we get  to take our route but often we end up doing his laps routine – it really is mindless repetition, it’s so boring, over and over. I really can’t stand it and only for Tommy’s colourful conversation (he is a great character despite his obsession with laps and routine) we’d never survive it! When we meet them in the evening it’s even a battle to get Tommy to go some place new or try something different.

I get really frustrated and it makes me wonder – why bother doing laps when you can go on a journey?

Isn’t life often like this as we can end up repeating ourselves over and over, the same routine, the same job, the same clients, the same restaurants, the same shops, the same holiday locations, the same walks on a Saturday!

Sometimes routine is safe, comforting and dependable but at times we do have to break out and try something new. In the current climate change was forced on a lot of us and often people will tell you that the change has been a breath of fresh air.

I reflect back on my own journey and in many respects it has been colourful with lots of interesting twists and turns both personal and professional and of course I probably have done a few laps too many in some cases!

Tommy Doyle, GAA Star, Kerry - 21st September 1986 v Tyrone

What a Journey!

I think of my buddy Tommy and his obsession with laps and then when I Google him I see him holding up the Sam Maguire cup as Captain of the Kerry team  in 1986 in front of a crowd of 60,000 people! How many have taken that journey?

Today I must do something new …

Are you doing laps or going on a Journey?

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion PR

Fuzion are a Marketing and PR Firm with Offices in Cork and Dublin

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Posted in Motivation, Personal development, Self Help | 5 Comments »

The Last Burger !

July 3, 2012
Varadero, Cuba

Close your eye’s and pretend

This holiday could not be complete without one last visit to the burger bar, just off the beach as part of the resort where we were staying in Cuba.

Thankfully I discovered this little gem on the day we arrived and I am ashamed to admit it, pretty much everyday that we were here it was granted a visit …ok, I lie, one day I had a hot dog!

My tough ritual became… relax on a lounger just off the beach (under a canopy of sorts – I just sizzle in the sun), read a book, listen to all sorts of music thanks to Mr Shuffle on the iPod, go for a long walk (very necessary to walk off breakfast, justify the burger and feel better about the dinner buffet!) and then make my way to the little food hut, where a very nice man served hot dogs, burgers and an assortment of fruit.

After that it was back to the sun lounger for more music before heading back to change for the dinner buffet …maybe a drink at the bar before or after or both!

All of 10 paces from the food hut was the beach bar!!!! A full bar serving cocktails including anything with the local speciality rum, other exotic concoctions and of course beer.

Cuba Libre

If only …

The burger was washed down most days with a beer, unless I was feeling more exotic and had a Cuba Libre (rum and coke mainly)… A hard life!

So, the week at the resort is over, my place on the beach will be taken up by some other crew who will take their turn at stepping off their treadmill for a while.

For me it’s back to “real life“, work and all the other fabulous challenges that come our way, and that brief little escape is over until the next time.

All I can say is thank you Cuba, now for that burger ….

P.S. The chef thought I had lost my marbles asking him to pose for a photo with a burger (all for the blog) – he did earn a tip for his trouble, so he got over it!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

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Posted in Holidays, Personal development, Tourism, Travel | Leave a Comment »

Social Media – End of the Auto-Post?

July 2, 2012
Social Media Training - LinkedIn

How often do you post an update on LinkedIn? – thought so !

Over the last few days you may have noticed a message from LinkedIn advising that your “tweets” will no longer appear automatically as status updates on LinkedIn.

If you didn’t have this feature switched on it obviously makes  no difference to you but if you did you need to consider how this affects your social media activity.

Twitter to LinkedIn

I’m not sure what is behind this change but I am suspecting that LinkedIn may want you to post directly from their platform – at least this way you will have to open up your LinkedIn dashboard to make a post and hopefully (for them) notice some adverts that are of interest to you. Clicking these makes them money by the way!

The big problem that I see here is that most people do not consume their social media from LinkedIn – yep, we connect, search for contacts but very very few of us are actually consuming – am I wrong? Is this their effort to make themselves part of the conversation and more relevant?

LinkedIn to Twitter

You can see from the graphic above that it is still possible to push your LinkedIn posts to Twitter once you click the little twitter box at the bottom of the post.

Twitter to Facebook

Another recent development I have noticed is that my Twitter posts are no longer being pushed to Facebook  despite all the connections being switched on. I have disconnected and refreshed the connection but it has made no difference.

I am starting to think that Facebook like LinkedIn want the user to log on directly to their platform to post updates, again in the hope that you will spot some adverts and make them a few bob!

Facebook to Twitter

I’m not sure if it is a coincidence but in line with this lapse in functionality Facebook are promoting their auto posts to Twitter feature quite actively when you log on. Hmmm ..

Robot Using a Computer!

Automation isn’t always good ..

Consequence?

So what does all of this mean to the heavy social media user who is quite active on all platforms and was enjoying the benefit of these time saving applications. Effectively you could post once on Twitter and this post would replicate on both Facebook and LinkedIn. This is what I was doing myself.

Maybe it’s a good thing?

I think you should embrace the change and treat it as a good thing.

Auto posts from Twitter were never the best idea for a number of reasons:

  • You can allow yourself to post more often and repeat posts on Twitter (this frequency could come across as “spam” on Facebook and LinkedIn)
  • If you have posts of a visual nature you are better going to Facebook and posting there directly – when you post from Twitter any link was just appearing as a link.
  • The platforms are quite different and while auto-post can be ok most of the time, often your “tweet” may be inappropriate on LinkedIn and maybe on Facebook
  • I find that if you use the “auto-post” feature you actually start to miss some of the action on the other platforms – they all do a different job for you, don’t forget that.
  • Users of LinkedIn and Facebook may not get all of the @gregcantyfuzion and the hash tag #FF, #Positivity “stuff” and can find it quite annoying and distracting from the actual message

My best advice is to treat each of the social media platforms differently, post separately as appropriate and for ultimate control use tools like Tweetdeck or Hootsuite as time saving devices. Using these you can select the destination for each of your updates (be it to any of your twitter accounts, your facebook personal or business pages).

The schedule facility on these platforms is an extra bonus, which can also be very handy.

LinkedIn

Regarding LinkedIn status updates I don’t see the change making the platform more relevant – If anything it could actually have the opposite effect!

If you wish to make an impact here try:

  • Participating in discussions on Groups you have joined
  • Start discussions in Groups you have joined
  • Start Asking and Answering Questions that have been posted for your industry sector/area of expertise

But I don’t have the time .. (this must be the one thing I hear most from people about social media)

Heh, that’s not my problem …if you have figured out that social media is good for your business then you’ll make the time!

Happy Posting ..

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion PR

Note:

If you need a helping hand with your social media effectiveness check out our Social Media Training / Social Media Consultancy services.

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Posted in Facebook, LinkedIn, Marketing, Social Media, Training, Twitter | 10 Comments »

Does “July” come once in a lifetime?

July 1, 2012
Mundy - July, The White Horse, Ballincollig

Once in a lifetime?

We were sitting in the fabulous intimate atmosphere of the White Horse in Ballincollig, Cork privileged to be watching another great musician, Mundy (he’s from Birr , County Offaly as it turns out and he knows the Loughnane boys from the County Arm’s Hotel!).

Joe Carey, the owner of the White Horse is a great musician himself. He loves his music and thanks to his passion we are lucky to have regular quality gigs on our doorstep in this fabulous “up close and personal” venue.

I love my music but for some reason Mundy was one of those artists that I had never really come across or seen at a gig but it was clear to see why he had such a great following. This gig was a solo, acoustic gig, which is always tough for an artist but he literally pumped it out, he has a great stage presence and a terrific sense of humour, which had the crowd “warm” and in his hands from start to finish.

I loved his story telling and his tales about his dad who warned him that he “shouldn’t talk to the audience about everything that was in his head” ..class!

His songs are really clever and he’s not afraid to bring in the odd snippet of a popular cover .. the girls standing at the bar were well impressed and bought him a pint of Murphy’s!

He launched into his anthem “July” ….wow, was that his?  I love that incredible, upbeat summer song and am embarrassed to admit not realising whose it was. This was clearly his crowning glory, his signature song as everyone in the audience reacted immediately at the first hint of the song. Everyone in the audience sang along, how couldn’t you? …what a classic!

A few songs and stories later the gig finished and we were more than happy to buy his CD’s 24 Star Hotel, Strawberry Blood and his latest, Shuffle and have a quick chat with the man himself (Edmund Enright – that’s how we found out he knew the Loughnane boys).

I wonder when he wrote “July” did he have any idea how great a song it was, the huge hit it was going to be and the difference it would make to his career. On YouTube I searched for the track and watched him entertain a huge crowd of 10,000 at Oxygen in 2008 who sang their hearts out to this happy, upbeat, memorable and really clever summer anthem.

He’s clearly a really talented musician and song writer and I wondered does he ever get frustrated waiting for the same inspiration and another “July” to come along . Like so many other great artists, often an incredible, defining song comes to them, never to be repeated or surpassed. Does this eventually become a burden?

I thought back to the gig, the anthem he’s clearly played thousands of times to audiences all over the world and I thought about the audience reaction and the huge beaming smile all over his face as he played it.

While “July” might come along once in a lifetime he can enjoy sharing it every day ..

Oh! ma ma ma,oh! ma ma ma,oh! ma ma ma My July …all together now

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion PR

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Posted in Music, Positivity | 6 Comments »

Dove è il bar? (Where’s the bar!)

June 28, 2012
Greg Canty blog - Where's the bar?

Are you tempted ?

8 am, driving to work in Cork and it is grey and miserable. The city has taken a right battering as we witnessed the thunder and lightning during the night as well as the torrential rain pounding against the windows of the house.

I turn on the news to hear that Blackpool, Douglas and Clonakilty have been badly flooded with the rivers unable to cope after a month of record rainfall and excess rain during the night. Newstalk radio have residents from Blackpool and my old buddy Peter Collins from Barry’s pub in Douglas on telling their flood stories.

Next up there is some depressing “crap” about EU bailouts .. too much!

I drop Deirdre off at the office and head to the Airport Hotel to give a social media business session to a new client.

Time to switch over to the iPod and lets see what Mr Shuffle brings ..

First it brings me the gorgeous “Skinny Love” by Bon Iver – I pass a couple kissing goodbye as he drops her off to work. That’s nice.

Next it brings me the incredible voice of Tina Dico singing “Warm Sand“, what a great song …we couldn’t be further away from warm sand I’m thinking!

Just as I pull into the hotel an Italian lesson I had uploaded on the iPod before a holiday many moons ago comes on, repeat after me the voice says “Dove  è il bar?” … where is the bar?

Not a bad idea !!

Greg Canty is a partner of Fuzion

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Posted in Holidays, Ireland, Irish Economy, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

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