Douglas Communications Group » Our news

The 10 Most Important First Rules of Storytelling and how to put them to work

sharlan — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 19:45:47 +0000

Client Harvey Ovshinsky of HKO Media and I tag-teamed in this article for Ann Arbor’s NEW, a nonprofit whose mission is to help nonprofits succeed by strengthening nonprofit management and offering solutions to issues facing our nonprofit community.

Cabaret Detroit logo created in an online competition

sharlan — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 15:20:27 +0000

I’ve written in the past about crowdsourcing graphic design. I did just that when I needed a logo for Cabaret Detroit, my new music performance endeavor.

I started with Logo Tournament and was disappointed with the results. I only received 15 entries. Happily, they will refund your money if you get fewer than 40 entries.

I had much better luck with logomyway.com. I bid $200 and received 199 entries from all over the world. You can view them here. Once the contest was over, I was able to fine tune the winning design before paying. The winner sent me the final entry in several formats, including Adobe Photoshop, so I could pull out the layers I wanted for different uses.

Do you know how to market to the LGBT community?

sharlan — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 03:06:56 +0000

LGBT means lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender. Pridesource Media Group helps businesses reach this desirable market through its weekly, free magazine, Between The Lines, and its website, www.pridesource.com.

Douglas Communications Group is providing public relations services for Pridesource Media Group’s Same Sex Wedding Expo May 1 at the Detroit Marriott-Livonia.

According to Harris Interactive, LGBT consumers comprise a $743 billion national market. Here’s what Pride Source publisher Jan Stevenson has to say on the subject:

Marketing to LGBT consumers makes good business sense. The readers of BTL are consisted found to have higher than average levels of disposable income, education, and customer loyalty to the businesses that market directly to them.
The LGBT market is a savvy one. They are sensitive to how advertisers position themselves, and whether they are willing to commit to the market, or if they are just “fishing” for a quick buck. Advertisers that demonstrate consistency have reaped benefits that far exceed their advertising investment.
LGBT sensitive messages are important. Terminology and humor can help or hurt a campaign. It is important to work with marketing professionals that understand the nuances of the LGBT market to insure that your marketing campaign is culturally sensitive.

Work with horses to develop your potential

sharlan — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 00:17:12 +0000

I sometimes partner and share resources with Pitts Aldrich Associates, a long time Michigan consulting practice. Principals Christina Pitts and Lynne Aldrich now offer an innovative personal development and leadership training program that uses horses as partners in the process. They’ll offer a two-day women’s training program, “Journey to Authenticity,” June 25-26 near Ypsilanti. Click here for more information. 4/28/10

Two speaking engagements in May

sharlan — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 02:31:40 +0000

I’ll present a webinar on sponsorships for the Michigan Association of Chamber Professionals on May 5 at 2 p.m. Chamber execs contact Bob Thomas at MCCP to learn how you can participate.

On May 27, I’ll present “Improve your E-newsletter” at the Michigan Economic Developers association day-long educational conference, “Inside the Economic Development Toolbox.” 4/15/10

Growing tomorrow’s businesses

sharlan — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 01:45:57 +0000

In my checkered past, I was the VP for marketing and development at Detroit’s first business incubator, The Metropolitan Center for High Technology. Fostering entrepreneurship seem to me like an excellent economic development tool.

I’ve returned to those roots as a mentor at Detroit’s Tech Town, whose mission is to “create and strengthen a culture of entrepreneurialism in Detroit and Michigan, leading to vigorous and lasting economic growth.”

They have programs to help people start new business and rejuvenate existing ones. They foster and find funds for those with intellectual property. They help execs from large corporations (read: auto industry) transition into management roles in smaller business.

There’s other valuable stuff, too. Visit their website.

Leadership Detroit grads Tweet up

sharlan — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 01:45:17 +0000

About 20 grads came together at the first Leadership Detroit “Tweetup”* on January 19 at Oak City Grille in Royal Oak. Back row, from left: Dave Rudolf, D. Erickson & Associates; Cary Junior, Malise Associates; Rachele Downs, CB Richard Ellis; John Witherell, Detroit Edison; Dan Piepszowski, Detroit Regional Chamber; Joseph Howse, Neighborhood Service Organization. Front row: Jeffrey Antaya, Plante Moran; Amy Amador, Mercy Education Project; Mary Riegle, American Diabetes Association, and David Reich, w3r consulting.

*Tweet-up: An impromptu event announced on and open to anyone who learned of it on Twitter or through similar social media.