I subscribe to a great service (it’s free) called Google News Alerts, which sends me emails linking to stories, based on keywords that I enter into my profile. One of my keywords is “glow tape” and I got a great story today.

Sportspectrum race management and Free Range Running, a running school in Shreveport, Louisiana is sponsoring their inaugural Lght the Night Trail Run, using glow tape, glow sticks and the light of a full moon to show the way over three marked courses. Those who run all three trails will cover a distance of 3.5 miles.

Anne Reese, race director, says that they have already had 60 runners sign up for this first time winter event and she is pleased to see such strong interest. We wish them well.

If you are curious about how glow tape works and how long it will continue to glow, click here.

We love hearing about new and novel uses for our products. If you have one, share it with us.

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and lots of other useful production supplies.

We spend a lot of time working on web marketing and there are lots of good online resources for those who sell products and services on the web. One of my favorites is Duct Tape Marketing. Its a great resource for ideas focused on small business, web centric marketing.

About once a week, Joh Jantsch, the marketing guru at Duct Tape Marketing sends out a newsletter full of tips about maketing, sales, client relations and web strategies to all his subscribers. It never continues to amaze me how many free, solid business growth ideas are available at no cost.

It appears that John supports his free web offerings through book sales and for-fee seminars but there is never any sort of hard sell for those who use his online guides. The idea that you can build a solid business on what you are willing to give away free is a model that never existed before the web, and it appears to be working.

No matter what your interest-business, hobby, career-you don’t have to look far to find someone willing to share proven and reliable advice on his or her area of expertise.

One of DuctTapeMarketing’s greatest offerings is John’s section on small business marketing. This is a terrific network building tool and John is really generous in his referrals to web sites that help you realize the concepts that the primary site promotes.

Its a great site but I still can’t figure out what it has to do with duct tape.GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and lots of other useful production supplies.

The Wall Street Journal certainly isn’t thought of as a source of entertainment reviews. Nonetheless, their Friday edition almost always includes a compelling review of either the best or worst in new film and theatrical shows.

Last Friday, I had a chance to read a really fascinating review of the new Disney edition of Mary Poppins at the New Amsterdam Theatre on Broadway.

This was of particular interest to me, as this show, still in previews, has recently become a customer of ours. They have ordered Electratrac cables among other things, and we are proud to be a supplier.
We have supported a number of Broadway Tours (The Lion King, The Phantom of The Opera, The Producers, etc.) for many years but it has been tough to break into the New York Market. Finding customers for our supplies on Broadway has been all but impossible. The New York theatre community is very close and doesn’t quickly welcome outsiders.
The WSJ focuses on the show’s special effects and spends a lot of time differentiating this show form the movie. No Julie Andrews in this production. The describe the star, Ashley Brown, as a “prickly” and the sub-headline for the article is “a spoonful of vinegar“.

Still, their overall review is very popular and they predict that this show could run for decades.

Many lament the “Disneyfication” of Broadway, but between The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast, it is hard to argue with success.

Congratulations to Kevin Barry in Mary Poppins electrics department. He has become valued customer and we look forward to his longtime success with this show.

Sometimes you just have to live vicariously. That’s one of the great things about working with the customers we have. They do great things.

Long-time customer Carolina Ballet just returned from a tour of China and they took us with them. Well, sort of, anyway.

On of his last stops before completing packing for the trip, our good friend Ross Kolman, the lighting designer, for Carolina Ballet, dropped by our warehouse to pick up a case of gaffers tape. Destination, Beijing. And six other Chinese cities.

Carolina Ballet took their adaptation of the classic Swan Lake half way around the world for three weeks of performances in China. Their trip was sponsored by the North Carolina Dept. of Commerce, and as an NC based business, we are proud to have played a small part in spreading the word about the terrific North Carolina arts community to Asia.

Carolina Ballet has been an expendables customer of ours since their beginning nine years ago. They have played to thousands of North Carolinians and we are proud that they have chosen to work with us.

Their holiday production of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker is not to be missed.

We love to work with all sorts of arts groups. Tell us about yours!

GoodBuyGuys.com is your online source for Permacel gaffers tape, Duracell Procell batteries, MagLite flashlights, Nashua duct tape, Bay State wire ties, Electratrac and Coast Wire extension cords, OnStage Stand mic stands, and lots of other useful production supplies.