Rules of Engagement

I am a grandfather.

While this may seem like a plea for gifts for my amazing granddaughter, it is not. Unless you really want to send something. That’s entirely up to you. This child does not seem to want or need for anything at this moment. We all know that’s likely to change, as I am certain that she has already outgrown many of the gifts that she never even got to wear. In the words of Bill Maher: I don’t know it for a fact…I just know that it’s true.

I know…you’re questioning what is the relevance of all this. I am certain that the editors of this fine publication are as well. Work with me, people. You know that I eventually get there.

I am a grandfather. While I know that it is physically possible for me to be in my forties (oh hell…I just did some math and realized that, yes…I could be in my thirties), I am…not. I know that I am a person of a certain age. I have a full head of grey hair, and industry war stories and wounds to prove it. The Trophy Wife has been elevated in rank to the Trophy Grandmother. We are who we are, and we accept it.

I have been in the promotional products industry since it was the advertising specialty industry. When research was done via actually knowing product lines, or reading catalogues. When the more progressive and modern companies could refer to the large, clumsy microfiche reader in the corner of the office. When fax machines were still a couple of years away.

Some may call me “old” (never to my face). I prefer to think of myself as “seasoned” (if not actually “salty”, to a point).

I bring all this up as I’ve just logged off of Facebook. Yes, I still use it. No, I don’t give a damn about their sharing my information. I know that some of you actually followed through with your #boycottFacebook threats. That must have been the roughest two hours of your life. When I first signed up, I didn’t read the Terms of Service chapter-and-verse, but I knew that something like this, for free, still came with a price. Deal with it. To me, the worst thing Facebook has done is try to broadcast live baseball games. Stay in your lane, Zuckerberg.

I’ve gone on about social media before (remember: I’m old. I repeat myself). It goes without saying that I’m a believer. If you’re going to remain relevant in our industry, you have to stay up on all that’s going on. Social media, for all of its evils, serves us all quite well if we know what we’re doing.

As I’d mentioned, I just logged off a few minutes ago. In between viewing numerous cat videos, and sitting through extreme roller coaster rides (why do I subject myself to either of these topics, as I greatly dislike both in real life, as they can each potentially cause me to throw up?), I viewed several posts by industry practitioners who are…well…obviously younger than I. In way too many of these instances, their postings are dreadful. Complete rubbish. Like the numerous “Happy birthday” or “Call me” posts…not directed at anyone in particular. Yes…these are perpetrated by individuals younger than I. I weep for our youth.

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Ashley Madison (wait…what?)…all of these platforms are used on a daily basis by industry professionals. And used properly, I might add. What industry? While this column is allegedly directed to those of us (and by “us”, I mean “you”) in the promotional products industry, it’s just as relevant to those in the automotive trade or banking universe.

Come on people…it’s called “fishing where the fish are”. Many of us have an audience just as reliant on these sites as we are. It’s often just a matter of engagement.

We now all have the same tools available…it’s a level playing field. The younger crowd isn’t typing any faster or better than those of us who took Mrs. Crenshaw’s class back in Junior High School 228 (yes…that was a shameless attempt to find out how many of my classmates actually read my stuff). It’s most likely that your vendors, and your clients, are no longer of your own generation, and yet you can still speak to each other on a similar wavelength.

Here’s a note to my peers (yes…there are still several of them alive and contributing): this does not mean you need to start posting videos and photos of your spring break adventures in alcoholism. To me, that is equivalent to a once-relevant (and still important) musician (I’m not naming names or stating that he’s a bass player. Oops.) who insists on not only coloring his hair, but using what appears to be store-brand shoe polish to accomplish the task.  

We can speak to each other without stooping to each other’s levels. Two years ago, another (far less important) industry periodical named me as one of the Top-18 most influential people online. I was fishing where the fish were then, and I’m still there today.

Look…I get it. For years, I’d said that while I was now too old for a career in professional baseball, I was still young enough for business associates to call me “kid”. I know that the shoe is on the other foot, and that shoe is no longer a baseball cleat. To my credit, it’s not an orthopedic sandal, either.