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Wait, Don’t Order Yet – Somewhere Between Ronco and PBS

Marketing, slogans, catch phrases, and promotion, have always

been a source of fascination for me.  See the U.S.A in your Chevrolet. Ask The Man Who Owns One. No Hill To Steep, No Sand To Deep.  The art of the sell at its finest.

Before trying to sell you on my latest book, an explanation is needed. I tried my hand at selling used cars many, many years ago and quickly learned that it simply wasn’t in my nature to convince a potential customer that a Pinto was what the family needed when they wanted, and desperately needed a station wagon.  There is an art to selling and selling in such a way that the customer leaves happy.  Still,  if I sell a fellow a three legged race horse when he is looking for a mule to pull the plow, chances are that I am going to have a bit of trouble sleeping at night.  And I would bet money that when it comes planting, there is no association between my name and fond memories.

With said, let me introduce you to my latest book, and make you an offer that will be tough to refuse. In a nutshell this book is a bucket list  for the novice or hard core Route 66 junkie, a list of must see sites, attractions, and places where you can enjoy great pie. I can guarantee that if you hit all 100 of the places listed, you will have had an unforgettable Route 66 adventure, met some fascinating people, made life long friends, and be hopelessly in love with a road that has an international fan club.  Continue reading “Wait, Don’t Order Yet – Somewhere Between Ronco and PBS”

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Bucket Lists, Death, Taxes, and Good Times

Work has a nasty way of intruding into life. If, however, your one

of the fortunate ones then work, even when it prevents doing what you what, will provide compensation in one form or another.  And if your not one of the fortunate ones and merely work to stay alive, keep in mind a very simple adage. Hard work is a sure death albeit a slower one than starvation.

Coming soon! The ultimate Route 66 bucket list will be available in stores soon. For signed copies, drop me a note and I can let you know about availability.

This weekend allows for an opportunity to provide an illustrated example. Where I want to be is Springfield, Missouri enjoying the camaraderie of my Route 66 family at the Birthplace of Route 66 Festival.  Where I am is at home trying to put the current book project back on schedule, initiating coordinated promotion and marketing for a book that will hit the stores in a few days, working on the schedule for the fall promotional tour, getting ready to take the podcast AND Facebook live programs to the next level, setting up the ability to solicit assistance from patrons through Patreon ( the  red button at the top of right sidebar) and to provide patrons with exclusive content, and working on the next videos in the Jim Hinckley’s America: A Trek Along Route 66 series being developed by Promote Kingman.

Jim Hinckley’s America has always been interactive. I want to take that a step further, and that is why I initiated the patron initiative. So, …

What are your thoughts about the weekly Facebook live program and how can it be improved?

Would you like to see more of these type of programs from the road?

What would you like to see in regards to the podcast on Podbean?

The fall promotional tour will take place in October, and includes a book signing in Albuquerque and attendance of the Miles of Possibilities Conference in Joliet, Illinois. Would you like to schedule a presentation or book signing in your community?

In short, what would can we do do to create a new & improved Jim Hinckley’s America?

 

 

 

 

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Disasters, Delays, And Excuses To Drink Beer

It has been a day of disasters and delays, the type of day that

provides ample reason to drink beer, or become an Amish farmer and think of it as a career move. It started with such promise.

First, I addressed email correspondence received from two publishers pertaining to pending projects.  Next, I developed some exclusive content for patrons, as promised in exchange for their support.  I was running ahead of schedule, the day was full of promise, ideas were flowing faster than I could record them, and the birds were singing. Then the train left the rails.

As I had some business downtown the thought was that two birds could be killed with one stone.  So, I stopped by the office in the Dunton Motors facility to record the audio for the next episode of the Jim Hinckley’s America: A trek Along Route 66 video series (available to order through Promote Kingman – https://promotekingman.com/). I had also decided to do a Facebook live program about the recording, a sort of behind the scenes broadcast.

First,  when I turned on the iPad a message popped up that critical updates were needed. No problem as I had a few issues to resolve before commencing the recording process. Then, with that minor problem resolved, I set up the equipment to record as well as broadcast the Facebook live program. Notification appeared on the phone that due to excessive attempts to log in, I would need to try and access Facebook at a latter time. After a bit of research I determined that the best course of action was to delete the Facebook app, reinstall, and change password.

Delete app. No problem. Reload app, problem. No internet connection. So, while attempts were being made to reboot the router and get the system up I drove to Beale Street Brews to use the WiFi at that store and for coffee.  Half way through the upload of the app, loss of WiFi, just a minute or two but the first time this had been experienced at the coffee shop. By the time my coffee was finished, WiFi had been restored. Next attempt to reload app, successful. However, when I returned to the dealership, the internet was still down. Scratch the Facebook live idea.

Okay, no problem. I will just create a video while making the audio recording, or so I htought. I wasn’t happy with cut one so I deleted the audio file, and corresponding video. Take two, very good. Twelve minutes of acceptable audio. The video, not so good. At eleven minutes and thirty eight seconds recording stops, lack of available memory.

So, I finished the audio, packed up the equipment, and drove home. Of course the pile of work requiring immediate attention that began growing exponentially over the course of the past few weeks was still sitting on the table when I got home, because the work requiring immediate attention a month ago had buried the office.

So, I initiated the upload of the video to YouTube with thoughts of some creating editing dancing in my head, and forwarded the audio file to the video editor.  Next, responding to the email received in response to my earlier response.  Then I dove into pile one; organizing research files for the current book project, an endeavor that is now several weeks behind the self imposed schedule.

The day didn’t go exactly as planned. Still, it was a day of accomplishment, of learning, and of frustration. The current book is moving forward albeit at glacial speed. Two more are in the hopper. Discussions have been initiated to have a community exchange sponsorship for representation during the upcoming fall tour that includes the Mile of Possibilities Conference in Joliet, pile number one is a bit smaller, and episode two of the video series is moving toward completion with episode three following on its heels. The patron initiative has been well received, and inquires about availability for community development presentations are trickling in.

Still, it is definitely beer time. At this juncture all I can say is, pop a top my friend. It’s time for rednecks, white socks, and Blue Ribbon beer, or Lost Highway Double Black IPA from Mother Road Brewing Company.

 

 

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Henry Wriothesley And Prospectors, Patrons And Grubstakes

I would be willing to wager that few followers of this blog, or

anyone else for that matter, is familiar with the name Henry Wriothesley, the 3rd Earl of Southampton.  Likewise with Henry Lovin. Yet both men made contributions that forever changed the world. Wriothesley was one of William Shakespeare’s principal patrons. Lovin was the patron who provided the $16.00 grubstake to Jose Jerez, the man who launched the last gold rush in Arizona with his discovery in the Black Mountains, the event that led to the establishment of Gold Road.

For centuries patronage served as an the primary mechanism for the funding of the arts, music, and the work of playwrights and authors. In a nutshell, the rich and famous in a society acted as sponsors. A variation of the concept took hold in the late 19th century when patrons grub staked a prospector. A primary difference was that the reward for patrons of the arts was recognition and the enrichment of society, and the patron who grub staked a prospector hoped for a return on investment.

In the case of Henry Lovin, legend has it that he pocketed something like $50,000 as a return on hist $16 investment. For Wriothesley the return on his investment in Shakespeare was timeless plays and sonnets that resonate with audiences to this very day.

In what seems like a never ending quest to find funds to support my promotional endeavors, writing projects, video development, and related endeavors I recently discovered that the ancient practice of patronage is alive and well. As with so many things, however, it has been wedded to modern technologies. Let me introduce you to Patreon.

I derive tremendous satisfaction from my various projects, such as the weekly Facebook live program. I gladly provide this as a community service, likewise with a few other endeavors such as this blog. The challenge, however, comes from balancing community service projects with those that provide income, and the enormous amount of time required to develop them that is multiplied by the never ending search for funds.  For just a moment consider this – one blog post a week requires one to two hours, the podcast about three hours, and the Facebook live program about two hours.


Steve LeSueur of the Promote Route 66 initiative and I have recently learned that video development is a huge time sink. Episode one of Jim Hinckley’s America: A Trek Along Route 66, a video developed in part to promote Kingman (available for order at www.promotekingman.com) required in excess of 450 hours to complete.

Recently, as I was meditating on some of the current projects, how I could expand on them, and other projects I would like to develop such as educational programs, my thoughts turned toward the ancient practice of patronage. To further develop current or future projects I needed more time and as I am powerless to add two, three, or even four hours to each day that left but one option, find more time in the existent day.

As much of my week is consumed with the quest for financial funding to support the various endeavors, this looked like a place to begin the streamlining process. Those thoughts led to patronage and that led me to Patreon. This in turn led to establishment of a Patreon page, a place where I could market my community service projects, my promotional initiatives, and related endeavors to those who saw value in them. And that explains the red button in the upper right corner, which will take you to the new Patreon page where you can become a Jim Hinckley’s America patron.

To add further value to the service provided, I have devised a plan to provide patrons with a little something extra. Okay, with that as an introduction, what are your thoughts? What value do you place on Jim Hinckley’s America?