Just to prove people wrong . . . I kept hearing that “you and Cindy never get your pictures taken together.” Oh yes we do. But when you’re the photographers you’re mostly focused on other people.
But just to show that we do do get our pictures taken together we took pictures of each of us at the same time during the Brownfield Party. So there.
By the way, we’ve added all the photos we’re going to in the online photo album. Hope you enjoy them.
This year at the 2012 Agri-Marketing Conference Brownfield Party we were treated to a performance by the Red Solo Cup Dancers. Here’s the dancing and singing troop before things got rowdy started. I wish I had all their names but I think they’re most well known as a team. So you can figure out who they are.
You may also be able to figure out who some other people are in the video performance I recorded at Thursday night’s Howl at the Moon event. There are also some photos in our online photo album since it has finally been updated.
Hello AgWired fans. I’ve been getting a lot of questions about why our coverage of this year’s 2012 Agri-Marketing Conference has been so “skimpy.” The simple answer has been two words, internet access. The Sheraton here has apparently had major problems with their internet access. So I will be uploading hundreds of great photos that Cindy and I have taken including from last night’s infamous Brownfield Party and R+K Pancake After Party. I’ve got some wonderful content to share with you so you can expect it over the next several days.
Now, getting back to the Sheraton and their internet access. After realizing the hotel lobby wireless was about the same quality as rural dialup I tried my hotel room wireless (which I am not being charged for at this point). It worked even worse and the in-room ethernet port did not work at all. So after talking more than once with hotel customer service we had an ethernet cable dropped off that actually had broken connectors on the ends! Not sure why they dropped it off. However, on a follow up phone call I was assured that a technician would show up. He never did even though I waited an extra almost half hour for him. So, being the social guy I am I posted about this on the Sheraton corporate Facebook page. Here’s the exchange:
Chuck Zimmerman
Guest room wireless not worth paying for at Crown Plaza in KC, MO. Only getting .47Mbps down, .21Mbps up right now. Ethernet cable connection doesn’t work at all. Already had one tech look at it. Terrible. Lobby wireless almost non existent too.
20 hours ago · Like
Sheraton Hotels & Resorts Hello Chuck,
Can you please clarify which hotel you are staying at. We have The Sheraton Suites Country Club Plaza, Sheraton Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center and The Westin Kansas City at Crown Center. Once we have this information we will contact the hotel to further address.
Thank you
20 hours ago · Like
Chuck Zimmerman
The Sheraton KC, MO Crown Center. Used to be a Hyatt. Last time I called customer service he promised a technician within 30 minutes. After 45 min I had to leave. No one showed up. Earlier in the day a technician dropped off an Ethernet cable with broken end connectors. It didn’t work. We’ve tried on both PC and Mac.
17 hours ago via mobile · Like
Sheraton Hotels & Resorts
Thank you for this information. A manager will be reaching out to you to further assist. If you would like to discuss this matter further with us please feel free to email us at smassistance@starwoodhotels.com.
16 hours ago · Like
So, at this point it has been 16 hours since that last written promise of contact. Nothing. I at first thought that this was cool. They were responding on a corporate level even though local management wasn’t doing a good job. However, a social media response is not worth much if there is no follow through. It makes for a good lesson in how a company can use social media, or should I say, not use it correctly?
Post Update:
Here’s the rest of the FB thread to this point. And, no, no one left me a message on my room vm. That’s not true.
Chuck Zimmerman No one reached out to me at this point. Never had this kind of service at this hotel. I’m guessing your takeover and management changes are still a work in progress. Oh well. Thanks anyway.
Yesterday at 8:49am · Like
Sheraton Hotels & Resorts Hello Chuck Zimmerman, We understand a manager left a voice mail for you in your guest room yesterday. If you have already checked out and are unable to speak to a manager, please email us at the above address so we can have someone follow up with you directly.
Yesterday at 10:40am · Like
Agri-Marketing Conference Twitter hashtag – #NAMA12.
This past Saturday night was an eventful one. The weather turned bad at about 4 p.m. so I lit the grill and threw on the steaks. At about 5 p.m., our lights started to flicker so I quickly warmed up the extras in the microwave; 10 minutes into our supper, we lost electricity.
Thirty minutes later, my mom called with a frantic voice: “Are you okay?”
I responded, “Of course, why?”
As we were bragging about how good our steak and bacon was from the grill, a tornado touched down just a half mile west of our house. Our neighbors lost a shed door and metal shingles, my brother’s pivot was a bit crunched, and our friends’ trampoline was in the creek and half of their grill is still missing. This is just part of the tornado path up the hill from us. And the wind blew 70 mph the remainder of the night and all through the next day.
We’d looked out the window and saw rain coming from two different directions but never did hear a thing, even with the silence of having no electricity!
So we hopped in the truck and drove around (and we met half the county doing the same) to take a look at the damage and make sure our neighbors and my grandparents were okay. Luckily, the shed was the worst of it…and I say luckily because of what happened in Oklahoma, Kansas and Iowa that same night.
I’m a little gun-shy for what’s to come with the rest of the summer and our crazy weather. I wanted to get my son and his sleeping bag and sleep in our safe room – regardless of the fact it has a cold, tile floor!
Until we walk again …
The 2012 Agri-Marketing Conference trade show known as the Connection Point got off to a great start tonight. Here’s the ZimmComm team including our daughter Caitlin on the left with Cindy and myself. If we didn’t get to see you there yet then please stop by sometime tomorrow and pick up your screen cleaner since Cleanliness is next to Appiness. Here’s to hoping you’ve got the AgWired App on your smart phone.
The internet access in the Sheraton is horrendously slow in all forms, including lobby or paid in the room and I have not had much luck with either my AT&T hotspot or Verizon one either. A new batch of photos is uploading from today. Maybe they’ll all be there by tomorrow morning. One can only hope.
Remember to use the conference hashtag in your tweets – #NAMA12.
BASF has started a blog, Farm Perspectives. They want to know what you think. We welcome them to the blogosphere!
When we opened our twitter account, we had a simple idea: Share the best news stories, studies and blog posts on farming, farm policy and agricultural research.
Almost three years later, we’ve decided to try our hand at a blog. On the one hand, we meet so many fascinating people every day. And each one has a story to tell. In our new blog, we want to share some of these stories, especially those that may lead to a good discussion. For example, last week a colleague talked to a farmer who drills hundreds of holes in his field so that he can save money and preserve the environment. How does this contribute to sustainability in agriculture? You will find out here, in one of our next blog posts. On the other hand, many of our twitter feeds spark heated debate here at BASF. We may also use this blog to share some of that debate and opinions.
We are looking forward to your comments. To tune into this blog just follow us on Twitter or Facebook and keep on coming back once in a while. You will find new blog posts every three to four weeks.
We meet so many fascinating people every day. And each one has a story to tell. In our new blog, we want to share some of these stories, especially those that may lead to a good discussion.
Visit our website www.agro.basf.com or go directly to www.farmperspectives.com to find out more about our new blog “Farm Perspectives”.
Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “Where are best job opportunities in agribusiness?” So listen up all you Student NAMA members here in Kansas City for the 2012 Agri-Marketing Conference and getting ready for your marketing competition. Here’s what our poll results showed. Most picked Biotech at 28% with Energy coming in second at 21%. They were followed by Agronomy at 17%, Sales/Marketing/Communications at 15%, Dairy at 7% and both Crop Protection and Equipment at 6% each.
Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, “Would you be willing to donate the proceeds from one acre of your farm to help your local food bank?” Let us know what you think and thanks to everyone who participates in our weekly poll!
ZimmPoll is sponsored by Rhea+Kaiser, a full-service advertising/public relations agency.
The Executive Committee for the National Agri-Marketing Association has been meeting all afternoon in advance of the 2012 Agri-Marketing Conference. We discussed the strategic plan and how things are going with the core areas for it as well as other business of the organization which will be discussed further in tomorrow’s board meeting.
It’s time now for NAMA leaders to freshen up before meeting the students who are all here getting started on their marketing competition. I’ve already seen a number of good friends and NAMA colleagues and can’t wait for the rest of the NAMA games to begin!
Remember to use the conference hashtag in your tweets – #NAMA12.
We’ll be collecting photos to the 2012 Agri-Marketing Conference here: 2012 Agri-Marketing Conference Photo Album
