Just keeping IMC-Houston members and guests up to date...

On Friday, January 18, your Board met to plan, think, discuss and scheme for 2013. We spent all afternoon in the cold, wet woods of North Texas, and... ok, well, we did spend the afternoon in a cramped hotel room in the Woodlands (since Bob lives up there and gets cranky when he has to drive far).

We discussed the impact of 2012, a rebuilding year of sorts for our chapter, and tried to identify the reasons that consultants want--or don't want--to be involved. I think we hit on some things for 2013 that will be interesting to all.

We'll share some details at the February 8 general meeting (see registration on this site), but a preview includes:

1. An actual plan for 2013, instead of just "winging it,"
2. A set schedule of meetings, with topics, for members to have NOW,
3. A short list of a few things we can do to address specific demographics in our chapter (students, younger professionals, CMCs, etc.), and
4. A potential pro-bono project to be staffed and delivered by the Chapter.

Your IMC-Houston Board:

• D. Kevin Berchelmann, CMC, President
• Robert T. Snell, CMC, Vice President & Certification Chair
• Thomas Holt, Vice President & Membership Chair
• Lin Giralt, CMC, Secretary/Treasurer
• Richard Longview, CMC, Director-in-charge-of-everything-else

An exciting year, I think. Look forward to seeing you around...

KB

Here's what you missed if you weren't at the Friday, Oct 16 meeting

of IMC Houston:

In Professional Development, IMC Houston Member Kathy Fediw

shared her insights and experiences in “Writing for Publicity and

Profit”. Kathy shared how easy it is to develop baseline content

materials, which, with the right repackaging and promotion, become

several different products, ideal for articles, workshops, workbooks,

manuals and book chapters. These can lead to additional publicity,

technical credibility and even continuing revenue streams! Whether

you are into writing for fun, profit or both, Kathy gave some practical

tips and pointers on how to get started, get polished and get published.

Awesome ideas for use right now, especially during the slow times

you might experience with the holidays approaching.

The featured speaker was Ward Pennebaker on “Don't Let a

Good Recession Go to Waste”. His talk was both motivational

and practical, reminding us of some great companies formed during

the Depression (Fortune Magazine, Texas Instruments, and Lazy-Boy

Recliners) and also during the recession in the early 1980's

(Microsoft, Apple). He cautioned against letting your market presence

shrink during these tough times, lest you fall beneath the customer radar

entirely. During downturns he suggested that you need to sharpen

your focus on your brand and its market value, develop the right tools

and message to convey that image and be prepared to deal with the

next game changer, which may well be social media, as it arrives in

the B2B environment during the upturn. Some real food for thought

as we plan our business activities over the next months!

Let us know if you want to contribute or have suggestions for future

editions of our local Presidents newsletter, especially if you have a

tried and true product, a highlight of another local group meeting or

key industry info to share!

We are also looking for sponsors of our monthly Raffle Baskets.

This is a unique way to get some additional publicity for your firm

both at our meeting and on our web site. Contact George Phares

at gphares@strategicdirectionresources.com for more information.

Be sure to mark your calendars for upcoming IMC events:

1. Next month IMC Houston meets 20 November. Come get

your newsletter! Find out everything that you want to know about

CMC Certification at the Professional Development session and

see how this important certification can boost your chance for

success NOW!

Hear about “An Holistic Approach to Decision Making” from

Dr. Errol Wirasinghe. He promises a seven-step approach to a decision,

which will give the decision-maker what he/she needs to make the best

possible decision.

2. December Holiday Event on 4 December. A social

evening of just plain fun with a dinner and live auction for charity