I Hate the Word "INFRASTRUCTURE"

Why? Because words really do matter.

My perception of “infrastructure” is that it is so basic and so present and so uninspiring. No question it’s vitally important to employ people to fix our network of roads and highways, bridges and sewers. Lots of short term work for lots of people. But is investing so much of our Federal stimulus money in “infrastructure” really stimulus? If we are going to truly stimulate the economy in a more permanent way, then I would choose to invest in “RESURGENCE”. That’s a word that inspires us to invest in bringing us back and moving us forward with great energy, entrepreneurship, and incenting activity in the new economy.

Under that mind set, “infrastructure” projects would be the completing of the broadband network, further systemizing higher education, linking our port authorities to build a state-of-the art distribution system, building public-private partnerships with investors who want to help us diversify our enormous number of auto parts and auto supply businesses. Those are the platforms of a “resurgent” economy that will lift us up competitively. It will be a crying shame if we seek and take all that money from the Feds just to repair what we were versus invest in what we can be. Whether it be health care, education, or the economy, we need to “build” the next generation of who we can be, and resist trying to shore up what we were and obviously cannot be again.

Yes, our leaders will certainly hear the clamoring and feel the pressure to save the jobs or invest in industry ideas that are at or near death. But we should hearken to the new tone our President has set; a new tone of sincerity, candor, and the blunt truth - a new tone our Governor has embraced as well. So, we cannot pretend that we can return to the old way and the old industries. We can’t keep writing new chapters to an old story about us being leaders of the Industrial Revolution. This crisis brings to us opportunity. If we are smart in appealing to the Feds to help us build the future, the Midwest region can attract more than our share of funds, including dollars from the private sector to help us retain and attract the leaders of this next economic revolution.


David Milenthal is CEO and founder of The Milenthal Group – a strategic marketing firm focused on helping "game changers" transition from ideation to commercialization, or from public unawareness to mass movement by helping develop their missions, create brands, establish persuasive selling propositions and find a powerful voice in today's new ideology and new economy.

Obama's New Energy Economy Can Help Midwest

During this past Presidential Campaign, I was part of a group called “CleanTech for Obama” which developed an impressive network of individuals throughout the country, especially in the 15 battleground states. Our focus was to promote Obama’s new energy economy agenda and illustrate the need for building green jobs. Now, as President-Elect Obama creates his administrative team, it is clear that the new energy economy continues to be a priority for the future.

Leaders from the “CleanTech for Obama” gathered in San Francisco this past week to discuss the possibility of forming an organization to build on the network from the campaign. I was flattered to be invited to participate in this meeting. It was a very impressive group of individuals whose expertise range from venture funding to policy development to grassroots organizing and environmental advocacy. Even with differing personal agendas, the members of the group came to a very important consensus - the urgency to create a future that leads with green collar jobs, builds energy solutions companies, creates energy security, and supports energy efficiencies.

The epicenter of energy activity has been focused on states like California and Oregon where environmental issue are part of every day life. But now with the auto crisis these past couple of months, it becomes more apparent that the spotlight needs to shift and widen to include the Midwest. There is now more significance to the notion of converting our industries into green businesses and green collar jobs as well as a driving force for the economic transformation of this region. We need to be at the forefront of encouraging creative innovations that will support the auto industry’s transition period. And, we can utilize these new skills for broader energy solutions throughout our region and our country as a whole.

I was one of only a few people of the Midwest at the meeting in San Francisco, so I feel compelled to help bring the new green environmental message and initiatives to this part of our country—the heart of it all.

Bonnie Milenthal is a partner of The Milenthal Group – a strategic marketing firm focused on helping "game changers" transition from ideation to commercialization, or from public unawareness to mass movement by helping develop their missions, create brands, establish persuasive selling propositions and find a powerful voice in today's new ideology and new economy.

Social Networking – Changing the game of word-of-mouth

The Holy Grail for any brand is to attain positive word-of-mouth buzz from its constituents. Through all of my schooling and experience as a marketer, word-of-mouth has been deemed the pinnacle of any marketing strategy.

In the years before the Internet, word-of-mouth was a difficult marketing ploy to initiate and manage. However, today, digital social networking has absolutely made the integration of a word-of-mouth strategy attainable. With the advent of such Internet sites like LinkedIn or Facebook, and the incorporation of comment bulletin boards and product rankings tools in virtually every e-commerce site, integrating social networking into your marketing plan has never been easier…and it’s actually become a critical means to accomplishing your marketing objectives.

Barack Obama showed the world how powerful social networking is to creating a movement. By the end of his campaign, Obama had almost 3-million Facebook “friends”. He put millions of dollars into online advertising, and he raised millions online at $10 or $20 at a time…all through social networking and online platforms. Now, we look to this new way of campaigning to transcend to a new way of governing, where Obama will continue to leverage – and grow – his vast network to gain public opinion around his initiatives.

As I strategize around my clients’ own challenges, I am constantly looking at how social networking can help achieve the goals of game changers. A LinkedIn group around your point-of-view is an excellent way to pull people into the conversation, and deliver your message. Creating a blog and commenting on blogs are ideal ways to make a presence, and showcase your credibility. Allowing site visitors to comment or rank your products and services provides you with valuable feedback, and a customer lead you can follow-up with later. Your goal is to create a following for your brand…a movement of people that will advocate for you, talk about you, pull others into the conversation for you, and ideally purchase from you.

There is no stronger vehicle than social networking – word-of-mouth. If you haven’t considered how it works into your marketing plans, then you’re missing a huge opportunity to deliver your message and create a passionate following.

Jon Milenthal is vice president of The Milenthal Group – a strategic marketing firm focused on helping "game changers" transition from ideation to commercialization, or from public unawareness to mass movement by helping develop their missions, create brands, establish persuasive selling propositions and find a powerful voice in today's new ideology and new economy.
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