August 2008

Whenever I go visit a school, students invariably mention how they’ve bonded and become friends with their classmates. I’m sure they bond over learning and yearning and eventual earning. Talk about BFF’s!

The older I get, the more I realize I have less and less time to cater and pander to me. I blame my friends. They have helped mold me in to the affable person I am today, but leave me with zilcho free time. Oh sure, people come and go – but you have that core group of kindred spirits you always seem to come back to.

Two of my gal pals, Jennifer and Kathryn, have been around, practically, since birth.
Kathryn thought I was obnoxious and pushy even back in pre-school. She still thinks that. Jennifer and I always got in trouble together. She was a rebel without a clue. Uh, and still is. They’re like the little sisters I never wanted.

Then they up and moved away to raise their families.

Recently, we got together for the first time in – easily – ten years. It was if time stood still. We picked right up where we left off. Jennifer became a teacher. Alert the media. Kids now terrorize her instead of the other way around. Kathryn became a writer and, unlike me, managed to get a book published.

We laughed and cackled like a trio of magpies. In my formative adolescent years, my parents swore the three of us were slightly touched in the heads. Kathryn and Jennifer and I single-handedly invented ADD. And when we got together … it was still as if we were hosting “Short Attention Span Theater”. And believe me, my parents had even less tolerance for our stupidity now then back in the day. I now know what it feels like to be twelve years old again.

We’re planning a big get together next summer to keep the dream alive. Jennifer somehow landed in the Deep South (where it’s pronounced “sow-yowth”), so Kathryn and I are going there for a change of scenery, y’all.

If you’ve got an old high school or college friend that you haven’t reached out to for awhile, do it. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. And that’s exactly what I tell every kid thinking about going back to school. Who knows … you might even get a friend or two out of it.

If you peruse the endless auditions in the PlattForm vault, you’re bound to see a few people who have NO business being in front of the camera. We call them a triple threat … can’t act, can’t speak, can’t read.

But if you look hard enough, you’ll stumble across a few people who have gone on to bigger and better. WAY bigger and better. Simply put, starring in a PlattForm commercial can lead to superstardom – or something like that …

Take Jason Gerhardt, for instance. In his younger formative years, Jason’s goofy spirit and devastatingly handsome looks were used in a variety of PForm commercials. Until his character was killed off earlier this year, Gerhardt could be seen as the brooding (and alleged serial killer) Cooper Barrett on ABC’s “General Hospital”. Ah yes, from humble beginnings … Gerhardt has moved his way up the ranks. He’s now living in Los Angeles and getting paid good money to doff his shirt for absolutely NO reason. We should all be so lucky.

Meanwhile, several of our school groups who offer Personal Training use sweet, petite National Fitness Champion Beth Horn as their spokeswoman. She’s delightful, honest and has a real passion for what she does. And she will apparently hurl you into a wall if you get in her way. In late 2007, Horn was tapped to be one of the new “American Gladiators” on NBC’s new “hit” show. Pun intended. Horn now pulls double duty as an elite fitness pro for a number of schools … and then proceeds to impale people with a giant Q-Tip as her alter ego “Venom” on Gladiators.

As blondiful “Venom”, she’s virtually unrecognizable from the Beth Horn we’ve all come to know and love around here. The show’s makeover has turned her in to a psychotic Spice Girl. Think dominatrix meets drag queen! But for those of you who have seen her in action, you know she’s the most vicious of competitors. I pity the fool that messes with Venom. No wonder she stabbed me with a fork on that shoot in Vegas when I grabbed the last piece of sushi. She was practicing!

Micah LaCerte is a fitness model … which he’ll point out is COMPLETELY different than being a male model. For awhile, LaCerte was cast in a variety of PForm commercial campaigns … most requiring him to portray a lycra-wearing personal trainer. It wasn’t exactly a huge stretch … as Micah is, indeed, a personal trainer. (Whether or not he wears lycra on his own time is a mystery.) In 2004, LaCerte went big time landing a spot on Bravo’s reality show “Manhunt: The Search for America’s Most Gorgeous Male Model”. Unfortunately, he was also eliminated early in the season … and not unlike “Survivor”, LaCerte had to turn in this Speedos … in lieu of a torch.

LaCerte quickly bounced back landing several national men’s fitness magazine covers. He and his eight-pack (yes, his abs are THAT impressive) are still in demand to this day. “I have 2 words to describe the staff at Platform: ‘YOU ROCK!’”, LaCerte recently said. “I shot some great work with you guys! And you know where to find a half naked guy for a shoot if needed!”

Yes, fame can be a fickle beast … especially if you’ve been in a commercial for PlattForm. And considering some of our most popular spots are several years old, it’s possible you’ll see a semi-familiar (albeit younger) face gracing local airwaves.

If you are someone that has ever worked in, with, or around the Media Department, you are most likely well aware of the popular daytime programming that works very well in mining leads for our clientele. This includes the Springer’s, the Maury’s, Court programming etc.

Well, instead of cramming more insight into your brain about why these programs work, or what they are about (be it “I’m Pimpin’ my Mom”, “Angry Women Smackdown!”, the classic “Jerry’s Thanksgiving Special”, or otherwise), instead I have decided to tell you about a show you may not have heard of (and perhaps even give you reason to stop forcing yourself to watch summer re-runs during prime-time). I would like to tell you about a show that in my opinion is probably the greatest drama to ever hit Television. In fact this show was deemed so prolific that CBS even bought the rights to show the first full season (although edited into a much tamer version) from Showtime. This is the first time that a deal like this has ever taken place, the five Emmy nominations didn’t hurt things either….

Well folks, if you haven’t guessed it by now, I am talking about Dexter. Originally adapted for Television from Jeff Lindsay’s novel Darkly Dreaming Dexter (which is just one in the series of books), this series is centered around the character Dexter Morgan. Dexter works for the Miami-Metro PD as a forensic blood spatter analyst. At least that’s what he does to pay the rent.

Dexter, you see, is in all actuality a serial killer. He however is not just a crazed sociopath that goes on random sprees and preying on the innocent. No, far from it. He is more-so a very calculating, thorough, and precise killing machine - but there is a catch. Dexter only kills those deemed as “deserving”. Be it a mass murderer, or someone who brings harm to children, Dexter feeds his desire to feed his insatiable drive to kill by ridding what most of society could consider terrible individuals. Dexter derived his planning (and victim selection) from his adoptive father, Officer Harry Morgan, who noticed Dexter’s dark desires at a young age.

All apologies to those reading this who find the topic somewhat grotesque, but I will leave the remainder of the details (including all of the twists and turns) for the rest of you to see on your own. Dexter season 3 begins this September on Showtime, and the first season is currently for sale via a variety of outlets (season 2 will be available very soon).

Too bad Showtime is not a great place to reach our client’s demographic.

- John Carmichael

As a developer, this is the #1 question I ask myself over and over again. We are faced with goals that we have to achieve and issues that must be addressed and resolved. So we are forced to ask ourselves, what makes it work? What is the best solution that will give us the results we want? I am not here to give the answer, but rather to help you ask yourself the right questions. In a corporate environment, there are many things that have to be considered. Before asking yourself how it will affect the website, you first have to consider the business at hand – the company. There is nothing worse than tarnishing your company’s name via an online website. Our leaders, Michael Platt and Dave Admire, indirectly give very good examples of the mindset needed to help the company succeed.

Even though we’re not directly an internet based company, the internet does account for the majority of the work that we do. So it can be very easy to get caught up in thinking what’s best for the websites rather than keeping the company first. And as a developer, I used to find myself in this situation often. But as time goes, you learn.

It will come to realization for you, that no matter how well a site is designed, how many clients you have or how stable the framework is that the site is built on, marketing is still the key. With all of those key factors, and no visitors, a website can still amount to nothing. But, with a company such as our Plattform Advertising and a team like the Internal Site Managers, I have realized much of what it takes to ensure the business succeeds as a whole. What I hope to take with me in the future, is this knowledge that I feel is very valuable to anyone who decides to get into marketing. And if you do decide to do so, PlattForm Advertising would not be a bad place to start.

With the recent downturn in the economy, basic staples are becoming difficult to afford. So are basic pens and pencils. Not to mention, basic rulers and Elmer’s glue. Recently, PlattForm’s Philanthropic Committee (a.k.a. “Team Phil”) teamed up Della Lamb to hold a company-wide school supply drive through early July.

Aptly titled “Operation Back-To-School,” the idea was to get nearly 50 backpacks filled with a wide assortment of school supplies to help low-income kids sponsored by Della Lamb charities.

“All of these items PlattForm donated are critical to starting each little kiddo off for a successful year of learning,” said Judy McGonigle Akers, Executive Vice President at Della Lamb. “These economic times are really hard right now for the working-poor … parents trying to stretch meager incomes against the rising cost of simple items. Your giving is exceptional!”

For the third year in a row, PlattForm organized the in-house school supply drive to help the nearly 800 kids sponsored by Della Lamb. PlattFormers from every department helped purchase a wide assortment of school items. According to Della Lamb, with PlattForm’s help, 2006 was the first year Della Lamb could provide every item on their back-to-school list to each of their clients. Items not only included school supplies, but new pairs of socks and underwear and personal grooming items as well. Subsequent years have been just as successful.

“These kids are going to start school much better prepared because of your generosity. They’re going to know that someone cared enough to include them,” said McGonigle Akers. “Once you’re on the receiving end of grace, you never forget it, and it affects everything you do from that day on.”

From crayons to compasses to Kleenex, PlattFormers were determined to make this the biggest and best school supply drive yet!

“We’re excited about the working relationship we’ve built with Della Lamb over the years,” said Team Phil Co-Chair Michael Mackie. “Since we’re in the career college marketing industry, we know how important the education process is. A school supply drive was a natural fit and a terrific win-win. We look forward to working with Della Lamb again in late 2008 for our annual holiday toy drive, ‘Operation Santa Claus’.”

For more information on Della Lamb or to volunteer, visit www.dellalamb.org

About PlattForm Advertising
PlattForm Advertising is a full-service agency specializing in interactive marketing and advertising for higher education. Boasting an internal creative staff of nearly 200 individuals, the Kansas City-based agency provides a number of student acquisition services including interactive lead generation; online marketing; search engine marketing; media placement; creative, print and video production; direct mail; and print media services. PlattForm Advertising is a division of Ad Venture Interactive.