Meet a businessman I know who exemplifies all the qualities we’ve come to recognize as The American Spirit. He’s honest, ethical, fair, dependable, and reliable. Kevin Robson of Central Florida provides an excellent product for a fair price, and is always available when his clients need him.
Some years ago when I was writing a twice-weekly column for a local newspaper and hosting a complementing radio program, we made a business decision to “brand” my name, combining the newspaper columns, radio shows, and my public relations business into a total product identity. At the time, the Internet was blossoming and it made sense to avail ourselves of its marketing opportunities. We decided to include it in our business plan.
My friend Marylou, a graphic artist, was already adept at webpage design. We hired her to develop and design Shea-King.com, website that incorporated the elements of my work: the social columns, the radio show, the PR business, and a gallery that featured photographs and commentary about locals and celebrities making the scene on Florida’s Space Coast.
We needed someone to host the site. A mutual acquaintance introduced us to Kevin Robson of BusinessMasters. Kevin immediately grasped what we were trying to accomplish and made additional suggestions that gave the site even more technical pizzazz. Voila! We were off and running. We added email and a chatroom feature to the site, making my radio show among the first to incorporate the listener chat functionality. Whatever I needed, whatever zany idea I came up with, Kevin was there with a “can-do” let’s get ‘er done attitude that was fun to work with.
Not long after we launched “Shea-King.com“, my friend Terri McGraw in New York was growing more frustrated by the day with an outfit she had hired to design a multi-functional, multi-tiered website to support her burgeoning TV show production company. She was being gouged by these characters who were charging her thousands and had yet to make deadline.
I told her about Kevin and suggested she talk to him have him assess their work to see if she was getting a fair shake. That’s all it took. Kevin analyzed the situation and explained how he could better meet her Internet needs — for much smaller bucks. Kevin drafted a proposal and Terri hired BusinessMasters to design and maintain Mrs. Fixit Easy Home Repair.
She’s still with him, some 15 years later with what is now a multi-media business that includes TV shows, books, magazine articles, household repair tips, a blog, polls, and a product line.
My business needs have changed over the years, and my on-line needs have evolved. I’ve moved everything onto the Internet, including my radio program. I stopped writing social columns for the newspaper and began political blogging, first with Blogger and now with WordPress.
Over the years since we’ve become friends, I’ve learned that Kevin was always an entrepreneur — he owned a donut shop and would rise before dawn to set out the freshly made pastries for customers eager to dunk them in their morning coffee.
From a donut shop owner to Internet mogul, his business has grown to include an impressive list of clients around the world. He’s kept his pricing affordable, his ethics intact, and best of all — his politics conservative!
Free enterprise. Small business. Entrepreneurial spirit. It works. As long as government stays out of the way.
UPDATE: From Marylou, whose brother Herbert C. Crosby was MIA for 37 years until his remains were recovered and he was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, 2007.
Hey, Don’t know if you know this Andrea but Kevin donated space (free) on his server to host www.firebird91.org when the announcement came out about Herby. I wanted to post information on a website…didn’t know about blogspot stuff then, so I contacted Kevin to see if he would host a website for me for Herby. He agreed and he did it for free. I thought it would be a year only, but that was 2007 and it’s still up and running. Although I haven’t added a lot to it lately, many folks have told me to leave it up so that people in the future who are looking up about a bracelet they have, or a lost friend, or whoever, that they will find his website. I need to update that site and will do so soon. I can’t thank him enough. Thanks a million Kevin!
“The Nation which forgets its defenders will itself be forgotten.” — Honor our Fallen, Support our Defenders.
Excellent topics. Thanks to share it all.
Kevin rocks. He does excellent work and has a cheerful and friendly personality.