Happy New Year from Disguised Limits!!!!

****Please accept this free download of 

The Very Best of Disguised Limits: Volume 2

www.lulu.com/shop/vincent-l-rogers/the-very-best-of-disguised-limits-volume-2/ebook/product-20371331.html

as my gift to you****

Peace & Blessings,

Vince

Home of the Braves – Understanding Your Target Audience

by Vince Rogers

The Atlanta Braves are one of the most storied franchises in Major League Baseball. They rank #10 on the list of most World Series appearances with a total of 9. Nine, you might ask? Why I’m a loyal, lifelong, die-hard Braves fan and I only remember 5 appearances by Atlanta, you might say.

Well the fact of the matter is that the Braves are also the most mobile franchise in American professional baseball history. Despite the uproar over the recent announcement that the Atlanta Braves are moving to a new Cobb County, Georgia location by the start of the 2017 season, in the past the Braves have also called Boston and Milwaukee home. Yet this move within the same Metropolitan area is somewhat unprecedented. The shift in location is seemingly based solely on matters of branding, positioning and responsiveness to their target audience.

On November 11th, John Schuerholz the General Manager of the club announced that “We are extremely excited that our address will still be Atlanta and so will the name across our jersey.” Despite this assurance that the team was not abandoning their allegiance to the name “Atlanta”, residents of the city proper – Atlanta, they regarded the team’s announced move as an alienation of affections. The team’s diverse fan-base of Black and White, affluent and working class and urban and suburban devotees had supported the team through more years of thin than thick. Now it seems that the only loyalty the team is being responsive to is the opportunity to move to "greener pastures".

Schuerholz would go on to say in his video statement that "We wanted to find a location that is great for our fans, makes getting to and from the stadium much easier, and provides a first-rate game day experience in and around the stadium." These words left many people who felt that they were Braves fans scratching their heads. Well the fact of the matter is that what Mr. Schuerholz really meant was Target Audience – not fans. Yet in the GM’s short statement, he captured all of the elements that should go into the hard realities of understanding your Target Audience.

Location

As evidenced by the above map of the Braves' 2012 season ticket purchasers, the heaviest concentration of paying fans live much closer to the proposed new stadium location than to the current one. The team further elucidates the question of access and location on their transition website http://homeofthebraves.com/overview They state that “The reason for moving is simple…. our fans, access to Turner Field. There is a lack of consistent mass transportation, a lack of sufficient parking and a lack of direct access to interstates”. Simply put, a business should try their best to be easily accessible to their target customer.

Ability to Pay

The aforementioned statement by the team mentions providing a first-rate game day experience as another reason for the move. The alternative translation is not based on what the audience demands, but based on what else can the team supply to a wealthier customer. According to Wikipedia, as of 2007, the median income was $70,472 in Cobb County compared to $45,171 in the City of Atlanta in 2010.  By having better access to a more affluent fan-base, the team will be able to open up new profitable revenue streams, such as dining, merchandising and other ancillary income opportunities.

Psychographic Targeting

Psychographic Targeting is a fancy way of saying that you need to know what your customers like. One essential but touchy aspect of the Braves decision to move is that the game of baseball is not as attractive to non-White inner city residents as it used to be. In recent years initiatives have been taken to revive Black youths interest in the game. Nevertheless, interest in "America's Favorite Pastime" and the target audience’s connection to the team better reflects the demographics of Cobb County.

As emotionally and economically disruptive as the Atlanta Braves decision to move the team to Cobb County may be for the City of Atlanta, as a business decision it is pretty sound. In your efforts to determine, understand and respond to the needs of your target audience, it would be wise to regard the same criteria as this beloved successful franchise. Access to your target customer, their ability to pay and their psychographic characteristics are inescapable considerations. Hopefully, the City of Atlanta will create new opportunities out of this situation, the Braves will find success in Cobb County and you will master the process of understanding your target audience as a means to building a major league brand.

Developing a S.M.A.R.T. Career Plan

by Vince Rogers

Whether you are choosing a first career or changing careers, you need a career plan. After carefully assessing your Skills and Talents and defining your Unique Selling Proposition, you should now be ready to identify the industry and specific occupations that you are interested in. Finding the best career opportunity is the ultimate goal of your career plan. Personal development and goal setting experts have determined that the best way to achieve any goal is to be S.M.A.R.T. about it.

S.M.A.R.T. is an acronym for a goal achievement process that stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-Bound. The concept is derived from the pioneering work of management guru Peter Drucker. The idea is founded upon the belief that goals are more likely to be achieved if they are precisely defined. Rather than saying I’m going to buy a new car, an example of a S.M.A.R.T. goal would be I am going to buy a 2014 Lexus LS Hybrid for less than $120,000 by December 3rd 2014.

This goal of buying the Lexus is specific because it identifies an exact year, make and model of car. We can measure whether the goal is attained by whether I am able to acquire the vehicle below the specified price. By setting an exact date, I am challenging myself to follow the necessary plan that is required to achieve the goal. Yet when it comes to your career plan, there are a few additional considerations.

Specific

There may be some preliminary steps that you need to take on the road to obtaining your ultimate job. You might have to earn your Bachelor’s degree first and start out as a kindergarten teacher’s aide on the path to becoming a college professor. Nevertheless, you should seek to identify your ultimate career ambition rather than a short-term job objective. The various jobs and educational pursuits that lead to your ultimate goal should be considered as rungs on the ladder to ultimate career success.

Measurable

Attaining the position that you seek is not the only measurement of successfully reaching your career goal. While formulating your plan, you might consider the salary, work hours, and location of your ideal job. However, you should also think about less tangible aspects of a career such as stress level, professional integrity, and work-life balance. You should measure success by the overall satisfaction that you derive from your career, not just how much money you make.

Attainable

We are all at different stages in our lives and possess different competencies and capabilities. If you have properly researched your career alternatives, you should discover the industry and positions for which you are best suited. However, it may be difficult to resist the tendency to pursue a career for the wrong reasons. Pursuing a career that is not best suited to your personality, age, education, or ability is inadvisable.

Relevant

If you have carefully researched you career alternatives, hopefully your search has led you towards pursuing a career in a thriving industry. This may not always be possible given your educational attainment and transferable skills. As the economic landscape changes it is best to be involved in an industry where career prospects are growing. If you are not currently well suited to a viable industry, it might be worth the investment to pursue continuing education or internship opportunities that prepare you to make a career change.

Time-Bound

As stated earlier, setting a specific date forces you to follow the steps that are necessary to achieve your goal. The tendency to take some shortcuts should be avoided at all cost. However, while on the long road to becoming a doctor, you may find that you are better suited to be a Pharmacist. Nevertheless, if you find that you are indeed on the right career path, you should be committed to investing whatever time that it takes to reach your ultimate goal.

Getting S.M.A.R.T.E.R.

Now that you are on the S.M.A.R.T. road to achieving your career goals, you should make an immediate commitment to becoming even S.M.A.R.T.E.R. You must consistently Evaluate your plan to determinate if your career goal is still valid and viable. Then you must Review your plan regularly to make sure that you are always focused and on the right track.

Developing a S.M.A.R.T. career plan might sound like a lot of work. Yet without one, your career search might become aimless and stagnant. Taking the time to create Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-Bound career goals may be the difference between becoming stuck in a dead end job or flourishing in a satisfying career. To insure that you stick to your plan, you must also commit to becoming even S.M.A.R.T.E.R by regularly Evaluating and Reviewing your plan.