Obama the Rock Star

I was lucky enough to sit right behind the President on stage in Raleigh yesterday. I had never seen a US President in person before, it was a great experience. Politics aside, it is truly amazing to look the President in the eye as he speaks. His followers are so excited to see him, he really is a rock star, very iconic.

Whether he can sustain good policy for our country or not, he will no doubt always be remembered for his charisma and charm as a speaker.

When I first arrived there was a gal in line that I stood next to with a Blackberry. She was talking to her friend and she said "this device has truly transformed my life" Her friend soon after took a phone call herself. I could not help but now ask her about the phone and why she said that. She said her family never believed she would actually use it. But she talked about Internet access, e-mail, the ease of texting, doing business on the run.

I love hearing those comments. Ordinary people using technology to make life easier. That is what Blackberries or technology in general are designed to do.

Welcome to the Future

Mike

Verizon and Alltel

Verizon has purchased Alltel, we know that now. But there are several pieces of information coming to us day to day.

Sometimes I wonder if Verizon or Alltel truly know what is right or wrong. The end users lose the stockholders win. In North Carolina Alltel customers bills now read Verizon. But that may not be the case in another state. But coding/rate plan wise they are still Alltel. Their agreements and hardware are with Alltel until the contract ends. Verizon is offering deals/discounts to Alltel customers to move them completely over to Verizon. They are waiving early term fees and activation fees.

Alltel phones currently work on the Verizon network but data features may not work properly so at some point it will be wise to switchover. Business customers are being treated differently than consumer accounts. The Verizon friends and family feature was offered now to comply with Alltels my circle feature. But it is not offered with all rate plans. You must meet minimum rates to get that type of service added to the rate.

Ask questions, find agents that follow the carriers. They typically get detailed information faster through their resources than the direct teams do. The agents that deal with businesses are pushing to obtain that information because the customer is demanding it.

I hope this is the last merger for awhile, the confusion is too great for everyone involved.

Welcome to the Future.

Mike

Power cycle

Have you ever been instrcucted to restart your PC? It gets locked up, it needs to be refreshed. Cell phones are the same way. Does your phone ever act up on you? Always power cycle (turn the phone off and back on) at least once a day. It is like giving the phone a nice shower without having to make an insurance claim! Phones need to reregister with their perspective networks.

Welcome to the Future

Mike

GPS vehicle asset management

You own several vehicles or trucks. Fuel prices go up and down. It is 2009 and most major companies with fleets are using tracking technologies to manage these assets.

What is so great is there are a host of financing options out there. There are great leasing programs, and rental agreements. Competition has brought lower overall prices on both the hardware and the monthly live services.

Track the vehicles, dispatch the closest vehicle, run route reports, customer visit reports, take charge of the fleet. The fuel and time costs are enormous. Imagine riding with every driver every day everywhere they go. Reduce idling and speed to reduce fuel costs. Reduce risk management with seat belt requirements and insurance premiums go down. Customer service is precise, and billing is accurate. After hour use is eliminated saving fuel costs.

It is 2009, get on board, this is a technology that will be as common as a cell phone in a couple more years. Your competitors have it.

Welcome to the Future.

Mike