Virgil Winston:Marketing Guru
The word “samba” means to rub navels together, so when my wife said she wanted to do it, I was thrilled. Then she said she wanted to do it in front of all our friends, so I got worried. When she said her sister did it with her husband and received a standing ovation, I decided to look up the “other” meaning of the word. For those of you not glued to “Dancing with the Stars” every week, the samba is a type of dance—a very difficult, strenuous dance—that Mrs. Winston is keen to learn. Unfortunately, she wants me to learn it with her so we can make a big splash at her cousin’s wedding in Brazil this summer. Now, I’m not the worst dancer on the planet; I have a few moves and have been known to cut a rug after a few gin and tonics but this is different. Samba is a spectacle of hip gyrations and tricky footwork that leaves you gasping for breath and, at least in my case, looking a bit foolish. To make matters worse, I forgot my wife’s birthday this year and she has announced that the only thing she wants is dance lessons so I’m officially on the hook.
As my Dad is fond of saying, dancing is the married man’s punishment for saying “I do.” My father is not the most romantic man on the planet, but he does know how to find the silver promotional lining in every dark cloud and I have inherited his gift for marketing through the pain. My many hours of dance practice has led to blisters the size of silver dollars so I teamed up with my podiatrist and came up with a line of promotional foot patches that are sure to sell like hotcakes in dance studios across the country. The deal is still in the works, so I can’t really talk about it, but stay tuned for more details.
As a professional marketer, I believe that turning challenges into promotional opportunities is not only useful; it’s an absolute necessity. There is no doubt that we are living in challenging times—our marketing dollars are stretched thin, so it’s doubly important to make an impact with the promotional items we choose to represent ourselves and our companies. Rush Imprint has experts on hand to help you do that—they are just a phone call or email away. So, the next time you find yourself in a give away quandary, call Rush Imprint…they will help you find your own silver lining.
I’ve got to rush off to a meeting with my patent lawyer, Remember, “When life throws you a curve ball, put your name on it!”