Championship Salespeople

It's easy enough to stereotype salespeople. We've all had unpleasant encounters with high pressure telemarketers or the annoying door-to-door solicitor.

...but here's the truth about our top Account Executives: A caring attitude. Team players. Determined professionals with a strong work ethic.

Capitol Broadcasting Company honored its top Salespeople of the Year on Thursday at a luncheon in Durham. Here's the cream of the crop at Capitol Sports:

Kathleen Bove

99.9 The Fan/620 The Buzz

…dedicated…caring attitude...team player
…added ten new accounts and grew three key accounts dramatically
…achieved her annual budget midway in October
…accomplished a personal best hitting the highest billing month of her career

Jim Moran

Wolfpack Sports Marketing

...a determined prospector
...in a tough business climate he soldiered on
...new business leader for two consecutive seasons

Mike Miller

Durham Bulls Baseball Club

…admired by all for his focus, determination and goal oriented work ethic
…highest total sales in the Bulls’ organization
…112% of his ticket sales goal

Mike, who got his start as an intern in 2007, with Capitol CEO Jim Goodmon.

These sports marketers make selling a dignified, significant profession.

Congratulations on your success. We appreciate your commitment and contribution to our company.

NHL All-Star Wide Open

I have to put my baseball pride aside and tout the NHL All-Star Game. It’s a major event surrounded by a monster weekend January 28-29-30 in Raleigh. Capitol Broadcasting Company is a major media partner with the NHL and City of Raleigh to promote the event(s).

Friday night concert (3 Doors Down), Saturday skills competition, the game on Sunday. Those major happenings are wrapped in the three-day Fan Fair and All-Star Wide Open in downtown Raleigh. Thirty bands on three stages, a 5K, ice skating, snow making, ice carvings, player autographs and food. Like I said, a monster weekend.

While this gives everyone something to do in the dead of winter, I’m more interested in the global notoriety that comes with this game. From Montreal to Moscow, hockey fans will be hearing about the Triangle. The game is televised in 150 countries. The NHL has issued over 300 press credentials. (If you include the US and Canadian TV crews, there are 450 people in the media contingent!)

Beyond the media attention, the event fills up our hotels and restaurants. The economic impact of the All-Star Game in other host cities has hovered around ten million dollars.

Like I said, a monster weekend: It creates worldwide attention for our community…brings all of us together for three days of entertainment…has a significant economic impact.

Read the media releases. Check out the web site. And make your plans for All-Star Wide Open.

Breaking News: Hurricanes' Staal to captain All-Star Team

Official NHL ALL-Star Wide Open Website

Capitol Broadcasting Co. Media Release

(Win event tickets!)

All-Star Weekend Banner at the DBAP

Kudos for a Colleague

CONGRATZ to Gary Hahn, radio voice of the NC State Wolfpack. He is NC's Sportscaster of the Year.

Gary has been behind the mic for NCSU and Capitol Broadcasting Co. for over two decades. We're proud of his longevity and that signature voice. He's even more serious about his faith...a great example and influence.

From Wolfpack AD Debbie Yow: This is a well deserved and very coveted award in the broadcasting field. I commend you for your many years of hard work and dedication...you have represented NC State University very well, and I thank you for being a great ambassador for the athletics program.

Remnants of Winter

Durham could have hosted the NHL Winter Classic. We still have a coating of ice from Monday night's storm.

This spot behind home plate doesn't get direct sunlight. It may be in this same condition next week.

Skates or cleats...at home plate?

This will be a good memory in August when the humidity is 99% and the game time temp is 101 degrees at 7:05pm.

New York Times: VISIT DURHAM!

The year is off to an especially good start in the Bull City…

• NC Central University’s Marching Sound Machine band was in the Rose Parade on New Years Day
• Smart phone maker HTC is opening an R&D shop at the American Tobacco campus
• Duke announced that has received a record-setting 29,500 applications for 1,700 freshman class slots

And the big item from January 7th…

The New York Times placed Durham on its list of 41 Places to Visit in 2011…yet another foodie accolade:

A decade ago, downtown Durham was a place best avoided after sundown. But as revitalization has transformed abandoned tobacco factories and former textile mills into bustling mixed-use properties, the city has been injected with much-needed life. In the heart of downtown, a crop of standout restaurants and cafes has recently sprouted… (CLICK HERE for the article)

This is much more than a prestigious restaurant review. The article is aimed at serious travelers. While Durham is 35th on the list, number 34 is Iraqi Kurdistan
(Safety, history and a warm welcome in a stable corner of Iraq) and numero 36 is Kosovo
(Mountains, medieval architecture and unexpected night life.)

Far be it from me to discourage your trip to Kosovo or Iraq, but you don’t need to renew your passport for a Durham visit. Come for a ballgame and visit our downtown restaurants. It will be an unforgettable trip!

Bulls website

Durham Convention & Visitors Bureau

Carpe Durham - foodie website

Facebook: "You Got to Have Friends"

We're cutting a check for $2,000 to the Durham Literacy Center. The DLC helped us grow our Facebook fan base. We offered a bounty (a donation to the Center) for each new Fan of the Bulls' Facebook page.

We added over 800 fans in the run-up to Christmas. That pushed the Bulls to almost 10,500 Facebook fans, and it puts us in the Top Ten of Minor League ball clubs.

Charity or bribery? I'm calling it a contribution!

Read more about the Durham Literacy Center, and visit the Bulls on Facebook.

Lions Roaming in Durham

The musical version of Lion King debuted in 1997. I'm late to the party...saw it for the first time Wednesday night...but what a party it is!

Sensory overload: the costumes, the dancing, the music...it's a brilliant, exuberant show! I felt fifty years younger leaving the Durham Performing Arts Center, so take your kids!

Lion King is here for 32 shows through January 30th, and the musical is expected to attract 75,000 people to downtown Durham.

DPAC website: Get your tickets ASAP. They are going fast...