The Art of Surviving (and the Art of Petersburg)

One of the forgotten gems of Central Virginia comes to life on the second Friday of each month when Friday for the Arts hits Old Towne Petersburg, and in April the event will include "The Art of Surviving," featuring art from the perspective of an even more forgotten and overlooked chapter of our community -- survivors of sexual violence. "The Art of Surviving" exhibit will hold a public reception on April 9 from 7:30 until 9:30 p.m. at the Petersburg Regional Art Center (click for a map). The exhibit is an awareness-and-fundraiser for The James House, a Floricane client in Hopewell:

The Art of Surviving exhibit is a collection of art and poetry created by survivors of sexual violence. It provides survivors from all backgrounds a way to tell their stories of violence from victimization to survivorship through artistic expression and written narratives. Join The James House during Friday for the Arts on April 9th for the opening of this month long exhibit and get the chance to meet artist Carol Olson.

If you have any questions about The Art of Surviving please contact Ellen at 458-2704 or ellen@thejameshouse.org. (This event may not be appropriate for children.)

The James House was founded in 1989 to provide support, advocacy and education for people in the Tri-Cities area of Virginia affected by sexual violence, domestic violence and stalking, to empower them to become healthy, safe, and self-sufficient. Take advantage of the later spring evenings with a visit to Petersburg on April 9; it's for a great cause.

Get Adventurous, Richmond!

On April 24, the Great Richmond Region Adventure is set to test the endurance, the creativity and the collective knowledge of several hundred people working in teams of up to six people as they compete to prove they know Richmond inside and out. The boots-on-the-ground exploration of Richmond combines the physical endurance of the Amazing Race with the puzzle-solving complexity of The Da Vinci Code. In addition to cash prizes, an additional $1,700 is donated in the winning team's name to a local non-profit museum or attraction. Here are a few more details from the sponsoring organization (and Floricane client), the Richmond Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau:

The Great Richmond Region Adventure is the ultimate test of physical speed, mental agility and Richmond Region knowledge. Equipped with adventure maps & clues, your team of up to six race to crack complex codes and decipher puzzles, each revealing new clues as your team continues its quest to win the ultimate glory and the $1,700 cash prize.

Logistical information, including the secret start location, will be sent to teams via email starting April 12. When you register, be sure to provide an email address to which you have access 24/7. It is best not to use a work email address.

For the more laid-back, this year the event also includes the Great Richmond Riddle Adventure, a family and stroller friendly version of the more competitive race. Head over to the Great Richmond Region Adventure website for details on both events and related activities happening on April 24.

Going Deeper with the Region’s Image Makers

[If you came here from the April Floricane newsletter looking for the post on our work with the Virginia Historical Society, the correct link to "Take 180 Years of History, Shake Well" is here.]

In February, I spent a fun-filled day with the marketing team of the Richmo nd Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau (RMCVB) talking about team culture and individual leadership. We capped the day off with a hands-on arts class led by Amie Joyaux at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond. Apparently, the day was such a hit that I was invited to spend a day in March with the RMCVB's entire staff -- almost 30 sales, marketing and support professionals who rank among the Richmond region's strongest ambassadors to tourists, national associations and business travelers.

One goal for the day was to build relationships and greater awareness across areas of the organization that often find themselves traveling in different directions (the sales team stays on the road a lot, and the marketing team juggles a host of projects at any given time). But the President of the RMCVB and his top managers also felt it was important for the staff to understand the changing strategies -- not just of the RMCVB, but of destination marketing organizations in general.

We spent one of the most gorgeous days the year has offered inside one of the more gorgeous rooms in town -- the newly renovated donor lounge at CenterStage. We talked strategy for a few hours, and provided the entire staff with a deeper perspective on how their individual efforts connect to the big picture. Then we shifted gears.

Immediately after lunch, we did a brief exercise with the Insights Discovery Personality Assessment and took our time discussing how our individual styles impact how we work and interact with others. We also explored what the team's strengths and weaknesses might be based on where personality clusters and gaps existed across the larger grouping.

Back in the donor room, the RMCVB staff moved into smaller groups to discuss how different audiences -- such as tourists or national associations -- might perceive Richmond, and how they collectively could work to either strengthen or minimize those perceptions. Not surprisingly, the staff identified communications and collaboration -- with each other, and with regional partners -- as being critical next steps. Future meetings will map out specific actions and tactics that will help them achieve their goal of being the best destination marketing organization in the country.

Take 180 Years of History, Shake Well

It's hard not to feel the weight of history when you're facilitating a conversation with the Board of Trustees of an organization founded by Chief Justice John Marshall in 1831. It's even more weighty when the collective brainpower of the board represents a bit of Who's Who of Virginia business, politics and education – folks like the presidents of the College of William & Mary and the University of Richmond; business leaders like Brent Halsey of the former James River Corporation and Hiter Harris of investment banking firm Harris Williams; and strong civic voices like Bill Thalhimer. For good measure, why not hold the meeting at the historic Williamsburg Lodge?

That's a bit of an aerial view of a two-day facilitation I just completed with the Virginia Historical Society, as it works to set a strong course toward it's third century as a collector, interpreter, educator and advocate of Virginia's history.

One of the great things about the VHS is that they have a strong staff that thinks hard about the organization's role, and a strong board that brings a strong commitment to its fiduciary and strategic roles. Their President and CEO, Dr. Paul Levengood, is a bit more than a year into his role. A recent recipient of Style Weekly's "40 Under 40" Award, he brings a new perspective to an old organization. Likewise, the board has had its share of change, and there were many new voices at the table discussing changing demographics, evolving technologies and the organization's future role.

My job during the two days was to kick-start dialogue, ask good questions, connect the dots between the perspectives in the room, capture notes and be as in-the-moment as a fast-paced, wide-ranging discussion allowed. In a few weeks, we'll pick the conversation back up in a series of discussions with the staff of the Virginia Historical Society; I expect they're going to bring as much energy and a lot more context to our conversation!

New Client: Facilitating History in the Making

I'll be spending some time with the Board of Trustees and the staff of the Virginia Historical Society, facilitating a series of discussions about the strategic direction of the Commonwealth's preeminent center for history and genealogy. It's a bit of an interesting homecoming for me; in the early 1990s, when I was trying to make a living as a freelance writer, I spent my weekends manning the front desk at the VHS, greeting visitors to the archives and galleries.

Four Steps Toward Building Your Brand

This past Friday, Jonah Holland and I headed to the new Westin Hotel for the monthly Retail Merchants Association gathering. We were going primarily to hear Lisa Moroni-Hall and Cathy Ferris McPherson of Brandevotion speak; I was fortunate to spend a fair amount of time with Lisa and Patrick Ind when they were working on some massive branding a ctivity at Luck Stone.

It was a packed house (and there was a pediatrics party going on right next door; Jonah and I managed to chat it up with my favorite pediatrician – the online and connected Dr. Gayle Smith).

But the bulk of the morning was spent wandering the brand maze with Lisa and Cathy. They kept it simple, but relevant. Your brand should do four things, very well:

1. Provide a clear definition of who you are.
2. Ensure that you are well-known for one thing.
3. Create a signature look.
4. Leave a personal mark with your clients.

They provided plenty of context in each area, which I capture below.

Who You Are

Beneath the very simple "who you are" notion lies a whole series of important questions – such as, "Why are you in business?" and "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" Perhaps one of the most important questions – "What do you want people to say about you and your business?"

You are branding to be different, to be distinct, Lisa said. Find out what people love about you, and do more of that.

They talked about two examples – one national and one local.

Nike's brand is that they are cool enough and serious enough for competitive atheletes, they told the crowd. And local bistro Can Can has built their brand around "a whirlwind of pleasures and vices."

Be Well-Known

In terms of becoming well-known for one thing, Lisa and Cathy suggested taking a hard look at the messages you are sending – are they clear and comprehensible? Lisa cited Toys "R" Us, which is about kids, kids, kids. "There's no doubt in everything you see from them that it is for kids."

Does the customer care about what you are saying? Are you motivating sales with your communication?

"We work with so many organizations that craft a message and put it out there for six months," Lisa said, "and then they want to change it. People don't know what they stand for."

Signature Look

It's back to consistency again – design with consistency in mind. Think about your logo, your collateral material, the design and layout of your physical space. Does your internal marketing convey a consistent signature look and feel? Test your message by asking strangers to look at your website, or visit your store, and then ask them to describe what they experience or feel as a result.

Consistency, clarity and repetition = Recognition.

Personal Mark

What you leave behind with every interaction should reinforce your brand message, they said. But you should also make sure you validate your customer's expectations and deliver on your brand promise.

Seeing Your Team As A City

During a recent day with the marketing team from the Richmond Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Center (RMCVB), we explored team dynamics from a variety of perspectives –– starting with an energetic and revealing exercise involving dozens of balloons. After some conversation and activity about team climate and the role that our individual personalities and an organization's leadership play in shaping that climate, the RMCVB team began to identify their best attributes.

Because their primary role is to market and celebrate the Richmond region, we then invited them to begin thinking about those team attributes from an urban perspective. What cities around the world embody similar attributes as your team? If your team was a city, what design attributes -- infrastructure, architecture, etc. -- would be critical to its construction?

Once they'd nailed down their identity -- both as a team and as an urban area -- we took them into the printmaking room of the Visual Arts Center of Richmond, where education director Aimee Joyaux and I helped them turn all of the ideas and concepts into a team-generated map.

It was an exhausting day for everyone, but apparently an exhilarating one, as well -- I'll be facilitating a retreat for the entire RMCVB staff (marketing, sales and administration) later in March.

Time to get more balloons.

The Wrap on the Steak Rap

The first Evening at Morton's community conversation of 2010 went without a hitch and generated plenty of buzz. More importantly, it created a space for a diverse group of five engaged locals to come together and talk about Richmond as a destination for young professionals.

This year's series is a joint production of The Hodges Partnership, Morton's the Steakhouse, Richmond.com and Floricane. My primary role in the conversations is to act as the facilitator, keeping everyone on-track and awake. Fortunately, it takes very little work on my part.

You can revisit the online blogging and tweeting of the event at Richmond.com or read Trevor Dickerson's summary article, "Steak Wrap", excerpted below:

Two of the panelists, Julie Bondy and Joslyn Bedell, both hail from the city of Atlanta. Coming into town for college, they fell in love with the Capital City and decided to stick around after graduating.

Julie found herself unhappy amidst the hustle and bustle of the big city and opted for the "big small town" experience that Richmond offers. Two others, Eric Kim and John Sarvay, echoed their sentiments. Kim explained that the cost of living is low and standard of living is high.

"For every dollar I spend somewhere like Boston, for example, I can live for 60 cents in Richmond," Prenika said.

Sarvay brought up the point that many outsiders come to Richmond and think there’s nothing to do, but said that he feels that’s just not the case.

"Richmond’s a very ‘self-service’ kind of town," Sarvay said. "There are plenty of things to do, especially for the younger crowd; you just have to take the initiative to find them [as opposed to larger cities]."