1/1/19 marks the beginning of my 35th year as Amtower & Company;
2/11/19 is the start of my 15th year on LinkedIn;
and on 3/7/19 I start my 12th year on Federal News Radio.
Over that time I . . .
- produced over 200 seminars and workshops, 3 conferences, and have done countless in-house workshops and briefings for clients
- spoke at over 350 other events and conferences, including breakout sessions, lunch speeches and keynotes around the country (below, keynoting SEWP conference in Austin in 2010)
- was the first to offer LinkedIn training for GovCon (2009) in both public sessions and in-house sessions (two workshops in March)
- have written 7 books, including Government Marketing Best Practices (2005) and Selling to the Government (2011)
- penned nearly 100 articles for Washington Technology
- appeared on over 50 radio stations and podcasts, across the US, Canada and Great Britain
- have been on the Board of Advisers for two major trade shows
- with Carl Peckinpaugh, co-chaired the election that saved IAC (yes, that IAC) from extinction
- pissed off more than a few people
- am currently on the Small Business Committee of AFCEA International
- been interviewed or quoted in over 200 publications worldwide- the latest being the current PSC Service Contractor
- have also referred many reporters and editors to other GovCon experts when I was not the right person for their question
- published the Amtower Government Market Report (now The Amtower Report) since 1991 (2 year hiatus in the late 1990s)
- have studied what works in marketing to niches inside the federal government as if it were an academic discipline
- and speaking of academic, have been an Adjunct Professor on the Government Contracting Master's degree program at George Washington University since 2015.
I learn from each of these, then I study, reflect and share my thoughts.
When I started Amtower & Company direct marketing- snail mail - was a big part of the marketing equation. along with telemarketing (real cold calling), traditional PR and events. Part of my studying back then was to get tours of federal mailrooms conducted by federal Mail Managers.
When email and the web landed in the mid-1990s, the tools for marketing evolved for the first time in decades.
A few years later when the web 2.0 tools came into play, including video, webinars, podcasts and social networks, more elements were tossed into our mix.
I see lots of very talented GovCon marketing professionals out there, both the experienced and the up-and-coming. I hear from some and would welcome hearing from more to hear and see what they are doing as these tools evolve.
So I continue to learn from each of these, then I study, reflect and share my thoughts with my clients, listeners, readers and those I occasionally get to brainstorm with, including:
Steve Bain (who attended my first LinkedIn speeches over 10 years ago and we've been in touch ever since),
ORock's Allan Rubin,
VMware's Christina Morrison,
Guy Timberlake,
Mark Meudt, who I've had the pleasure of working with on and off since the mid-1990s,
the Government Marketing University tag-team Lou Anne Brossman and Ann-Marie Clark,
market research diva Lisa Dezzutti,
immixGroup's Rita Walston,
Judy Bradt, who gave me my first public speaking gig back in the late 1980s,
Lee Fredreriksen,
GovExec's Connie Sayers,
Danielle Brigida (the only Fed on my list. We geeked out over social media on air),
Larry Allan,
Bob Lohfeld,
ViON's Liz Anthony,
Sage's Larry Rosenfeld,
PSC's David Berteau,
Carl Dickson,
my Bloomberg friends Kevin Brancato, Cameron Leuthy, Dan Snyder and Paul Murphy
WashTech editor Nick Wakeman,
event experts David Powell (FBC), Peg Hosky (Hosky Communications) and Mike Smoyer,
and so many others. I am fortunate to have so many I can share thoughts and brainstorm with and just let the concepts and opinions flow and begin to develop.
Having the radio show gives me the opportunity to discuss issues impacting our market (on air and off air) with some great GovCon minds, and it affords me the opportunity to showcase them as well.
So, I have done a few things, watched many others, thought about them, and shared my thoughts, trying to add value to the overall equation that is marketing to the government.
And I am far from being done.
As always, I welcome your feedback.
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