Almost six weeks behind schedule, winter comes to southern New England.

The other day, I came across a local communications company that seemed to misunderstand the purpose of shrink-wrapping your company name and phone number on your vehicles.

Instead of proudly displaying important contact information, this unfortunate example of shrink-wrapping resembles a poorly designed word puzzle that is probably more likely to elicit snickers and confusion than customer inquiries.

But this also represents a fundamental breakdown in communication between the shrink-wrap provider and the client. For its part, the shrink-wrap company probably figured that since it routinely covers bus windows, this client also wouldn’t mind its vehicle windows being obscured.

In contrast, the client seems to have reasoned that being able to see out of the back of his vehicle was more important than displaying the company name or phone number.

Either way, the intended message was lost.

To avoid misunderstandings like this, it’s critical for any service provider to go beyond the customer’s basic request by exploring the client’s goals and expectations.

By taking the time to discuss what the client is hoping to achieve, it’s easier for the service provider to meet those expectations and to reduce the risk of embarrassing mistakes that don’t serve anyone’s interests.

Cross-posted from CTmonuments.net.

If you’ll indulge a bit of bragging, my book on Connecticut’s Civil War monuments was profiled this week on the Milford (CT) Patch site, and the article was picked up and localized by a number of other Patch sites in central CT. It was interesting and somewhat different to be on the other side of an interview, and it was also gratifying to read the mostly nice comments the articles have generated.

Here’s the link: Exploring Connecticut’s Civil War Monuments.

Built in 1818.

Orange’s green features a new holiday tree donated to replace a larger tree that was damaged and removed earlier this year. The Congregational Church in the background was built in 1810, when Orange was part of Milford. Orange became an independent town in 1822.

Opened in 1883.

We’re pleased to announce the publication of Civil War Monuments of Connecticut, a 234-page guidebook highlighting 135 of the state’s Civil War monuments and memorials.

Most people who think of New England Civil War monument picture a granite solider standing on a pillar, but Connecticut’s monuments feature considerable design variations. In addition to infantrymen, you also see flag bearers, obelisks, archways, allegorical figures, domes and even simple plaques mounted on boulders.

Connecticut’s Civil War monuments were made of different materials — granite, marble, bronze and even zinc – and were dedicated at dates as early as 1863 (in Kensington) and as recently as 2011 (in Bristol and Hebron).

Regardless of the form, the intent of these monuments is the same – to honor the sacrifice of the residents killed in the war, show appreciation for those who served to defend the Union, and inspire future generations.

With detailed descriptions of the monuments, and information about each monument’s location, artist and history, Civil War Monuments of Connecticut is a helpful resource (and a great holiday gift) for Civil War and public art enthusiasts.

Civil War Monuments of Connecticut also highlights monuments honoring veterans of the American Revolution, the World Wars, Korea, Vietnam and other conflicts.

Civil War Monuments of Connecticut is available in paperback and Kindle editions from Amazon.com.

There were lots of good insights and conversations at Podcamp Boston (my first podcamp), but one of the strongest that resonated with me could be summed up as “You have to know what your show’s about.”

That thought, shared in separate sessions by Chris Christensen (host of The Amateur Traveler podcast) and Len Edgerly (host of The Kindle Chronicles podcast) referred to podcasting, but it applies equally well to any form of content and content marketing efforts.

No matter the form–podcast, blog post, video, white paper, or status update–you need to start producing your content by figuring out what it’s going to say and why you are saying it.

And it’s not enough to just say your content is “about” something. You need to be able to fill in the blank that comes after “I want to say______.”

You also need to understand your goals for producing that content. Who are you trying to reach? How do you want to help them? What are you trying to accomplish?

By thinking about and understanding the answers to those questions, you’ll be able to produce more tightly focused content that will go further in helping you achieve those goals.

What’s your show about?