Ethics is defined in the dictionary as the study of the general nature of morals (the choice between good and bad in human nature) and of the specific moral choices to be made by the individual in his (and her) relationship with others.

In the mission statement for Creative Concepts,LLC, my company, the final line is Ethical behavor is our first value.

So in other words (my words), ethical means choosing to do the right thing, being true to your word both in following through with an action or paying someone the agreed upon amount and/or paying on time. Ethical means that no matter what transpires and no matter who is doing the wrong thing around you, you continue to stay on a virtuous path.

This has come to mind recently. I am planning a “New Media” conference for June. I have asked a superstar of the blogging world to speak. He doesn’t know me, he has never heard of me, he can barely check on me because my website is still under contruction, he can check the google search and see some things, but still he is in CA, I am in CT, he doesn’t know me.

He brought it to my attention that he doesn’t know me and how will he know that I can follow through with my committment to him? It was a valid question. I gave him my response (a mission statement and rough overview of the event which showed my passion and committment for this forum) which he is fine with for now, but no doubt he will be holding his breath until he meets me and I hand over the check.

As sad as his doubts may be in human nature (and he has every reason to feel that way), it is a constant struggle in life to stay true and to find the truth around you. The good news is that an ethical business person always wins over the ones who choose otherwise. Ethics always win in the long run. It may take awhile in some instances, but a person with ethics can be trusted and relied on and in the end of a life, a career, a business, that is all you have: respect for how you have conducted yourself.

Ethical behavior is the first value for Creative Concepts, LLC and for Valorie Luther, Founder of this emerging PR and Marketing firm.

Am putting together, as we speak, a seminar/forum for corporate executives on blogging, podcasting and other new media.  I am sure this has been done many times out in CA. where all the action is but good old Connecticut hasn’t seen much of this.

Based on our experience with clients, many businesses seem to know about blogging and are interested but don’t know how to take the first steps.  I know that void exists because it happened to me with my other blog, www.entertainingnews.blogspot.com.  I set it up, messed around so I could find my way through the basics, registered with some directories and then I hit a wall.  I didn’t have time to figure everything else out and the information wasn’t readily available at the time.  I luckily found Sabine who is now my blogging expert.  Her blog is www.ctbizblogs.com.  She reports on the ins and outs of blogging for business.

Because of my experience and my team, we can now advise and direct clients through successful blogging.  Through the seminar, we will be able to reach out to many more clients who are curious but clueless about blogging and podcasting.

If you can’t wait for the seminar (mid June, stay tuned for more details), give me a call so we can move you along the blogging road, Valorie Luther 203 259 4202, info@creative-conceptsllc.com

Ok, now you know I am into the corporate blogging…right?  You know that corporate blogging can help you market your service or product, it can help you spread your company message, blogging can make you and your company a trustworthy partner in the eyes of thousands of consumers just by sharing some honest and simple info about you and your corporate culture.

Blogging can be used as a marketing tool as I mentioned before.  One thing, I think, that is missing from corporate blogs is the branding.  If blogging can reach out to millions worldwide, wouldn’t you want your logo, your colors, your tag line, your visuals on the blog so people can learn about your brand or recognize it if it has been around for awhile?

With all of the new internet tools available to us, there still has to be consistency across the board with the branding!

Keep your eyes peeled to this blog for our corporate brand that will be put into place soon.

 Call if you need help with yours!  Valorie Luther, Principal, Creative Concepts, 203 259 4202 or info@creative-conceptsllc.com

What the heck is TQM?  It stands for Total Quality Management and it was very big in the 80’s.  The “quality” way of doing business started in Japan..it took the US awhile to catch on but when it did, all companies wanted to get on board.  My father, while he didn’t invent TQM, he was the spokesperson for it in many circles.  He, David Luther, was the big guy who represented Corning Inc. around the world and talked about all the processes put into place by the company and how each and every one of those steps were effective.  Effective lead to a happy customer which lead to more orders which of course increased revenue!

Some of the elements of TQM consisted of departments working in teams to solve problems.  These teams were also asked to make present systems more efficient and effective.  If a memeber of the team wasn’t producing, the team would figure out what to do with that member, not the management.  Peer pressure lead people to a higher production rate.

There was also a big element of listening to the customer and hearing what their needs were and where the good and the bad rested.  Companies were taking time out to meet with their customer and the customer was both internal, the employees, and external, the buyer of the product or service and the vendors who partnered with the company.

Listening, communicating, and acting on the information put TQM ahead of the curve in its day.  My father was TQM and I am the daughter of TQM.

Blogging is very similar to TQM.  Bloggers are big communicators: they talk and they listen.  While every blog works on its own, bloggers can come together to update and/or correct information…Dan Rather’s story was blown away by bloggers and hence his career was down the tubes, Dell was also affected by the blogging community as well.  The blogging community also polices itself so peer pressure affects what people say about products, services or ideas…honesty must rule or you will be eliminated from the active blogging world. 

Blogging is a huge tool available for corporate bloggers who want to listen to their customers and act on their wishes.  If a car isn’t selling, go to the blogs to see what the car enthusiasts are saying (Chrysler does this often).  If a vendor isn’t quite working out, check out the blogs for what others are saying or check out their blog to see what the corporate culture is like.

Blogging is an available tool that may be new but it is effective.  Why not use all of the tools necessary to do better business?  This is what the followers of TQM did and now this is what we can do through blogging.

For more information about corporate blogging or to set up a corporate blog, call Valorie Luther at Creative Concepts, 203 259 4202 or email info@creative-conceptsllc.com.

Lists are becoming popular in the blogging world…there are so many people blogging now (22.5 million as of Dec. 2005), that everyone wants a list…a CEO list, top fortune 500 companies blogging, women blogging…Those lists exist including the women blogging.  Check out this link to not only see other women’s blogs but connect and learn more about the conference this summer!  www.blogher.org

 I will get back to you with the list for CEO’s and Fortune 500!

 Until then, call or email Valorie Luther for PR or Marketing help and that includes blogging!  info@creative-conceptsllc.com, 203 259 4202 (CT based!)

Yes another post about corporate blogging…I can’t seem to stay away from it.  My company, Creative Concepts, offers many services from branding, to ads, to newsletters, to events, to graphic projects like brochures and sales collateral and traditional public relations, but blogging is exciting for me/us because of encompassing all of what we do: branding, communicating, sharing your expert knowledge with the world, getting feedback from clients.  All of these things are important to any company and are the base of success…start or continue your success with a corporate blog!

I so believe in corporate blogging even though the world has not totally embraced it.  Corporate blogging allows each company to send their unique message out into the blog world where potential clients wait right around the corner.  Bloggers want to be heard, obviously, and are willing to review products and services.  Now obviously the company needs to be confident about what they provide but once that is accomplished, blogging is a low cast and unbelievably fast way to get the word around about how great you are or how smart your corporate strategy is.

Stay tuned for more on blogging!

This is my first blog entry for Creative Concepts, a pr and marketing firm specializing in finding the answers for small to medium sized companies who need help with their pr and marketing efforts or for large companies who need a fresh point of view. 

One of the services we provide is a blogging service.  You must be asking how that is possible when this is only my first entry.  Well, I have blogged for quite some time now through www.Entertainingnews.blogspot.com which is focused on event planning and other cool news items in the entertainment world.  We, at Creative Concepts, also have a blogging expert, Sabine Kirstein, www.ctbizblogs.com, who helps each client with the technical aspects of blogging.  In addition to my pr/marketing support and Sabine’s technical support, we have a blog designer who only designs blogs.  This is very important in the corporate arena where branding is being lost on the blogs.  We feel that not only are the words important but the visual is as well.

 For more information about Creative Concepts, please email info@creative-conceptsllc.com (our website is being reworked so check back later for the site that will tell you everything about Creative Concepts, LLC)