The Open House was designed to show how the former Cypress Gardens park will be transformed into LEGOLAND Florida, which will be the largest Legoland park to date.  The Florida park consists of 145 acres and will retain the original botanical gardens and water ski show.  Some of the existing rides that are age-appropriate will be kept and re-themed and the Mansion will be used for special events.

Winter Haven residents turned out in force and were welcomed by LEGOLAND staff who were on hand to answer any questions that arose from the displays.

I arrived at 3.45 p.m. for what was to be a 4.00p.m.  till 7.00p.m. Open House.  Thinking I would be early and be able to snap up an easy parking spot at the Orange Dome, which is one of Winter Haven’s landmarks, I was surprised  to find that the car park was already full and vehicles were being directed to park on the grass areas around the Dome.

Walking up to the main entrance were many people, adults and children, senior citizens and professionals , all of whom were queueing at the main entrance.  Television camera crews were wandering around with their cameras at the ready, and exactly at 4.00 p.m the doors were opened and we filed through.

Staff were on hand, giving out leaflets, and then everyone moved into the main hall of the Dome, to be greeted by the new LEGOLAND Florida logo.

Immediately the children, who are of course , the most knowledgeable about LEGO rushed across the hall to the Playland area, where tables were set up with the LEGO boards and bins of the building bricks.

I watched as one little girl spotted Thomas the Tank Engine and went across to hug  the model engine. 

A couple of boys looked in awe at the LEGO built  Darth Vader display standing towards the rear of the hall. And the copy in LEGO bricks of Rodin’s The Thinker drew some admiring glances and touches too.

One of the most interesting facets of the event, to me, anyway, was the fascination shown by the adults.  Around the outskirts  of the hall were TV screens showing what visitors to LEGOLAND could expect to see (obviously taken from othe LEGOLAND parks elsewhere in the world), and adults and children were standing spellbound, watching these demonstrations.

Many of the local visitors were able to see what changes or modifications will be made to the existing Cypress Gardens buildings, and Legoland staff were there to answer questions.  Such questions included when is the park due to open, what attractions will there be at the new park, how big will it be, what impact will it have on surrounding residential areas and roads.   Ons such question concerned the Lego store in Downtown Disney, and the answer was that while both give a great experience for children, the LEGO store is a Brand retail outlet, while LEGOLAND Florida will be a full- day theme park, with over 50 rides, shows  and attractions. There was huge applause when it was announced that the  Botanical Gardens would be retained.  Many of the older residents of the area have fond memories of the Gardens and were delighted to hear that they will remain a part of the Park.

John Jacobsen, managing director for Legoland Parks, was in fine form, wandering around the hall, talking to curious and concerned visitors  and then gave his introductory speech from the platform, answering questions from the floor afterwards.    I met with him and his Sales and Marketing Director, Kim Isemann, but it was really too busy to do anything but have a quick chat.  I also spoke  with Tom Patton, executive director of the Central Florida Development Council and Rodney Carson, Director of Economic development about the crowds  that they were seeing.  Tom was pleased that Legoland is getting the community involved so early.   He said, “It gives you an idea of what to expect when they get here officially” .  Certainly for close to three thousand people who turned up on a sweltering July afternoon to see what the future holds for Winter Haven and the area, this LEGOLAND Florida Open House provided some fine answers.   The new LEGOLAND Florida park is due to open in the fall of 2011.

A telephone call that should have taken just minutes to complete and a decision that could have benefited everyone concerned has just left me with a raging headache and a state of despair and anger.

When I have to wait on the phone while tinny music plays in my ear, and a disembodied voice returns every five minutes to tell me I am important and my call will be answered in due course, I want to scream.  The music is mostly what I call elevator music, and does not transpose comfortably to a telephone earpiece, and the disembodied voice reassuring me is less than reasssuring, to tell the truth.

Should I really be listening to  that recording telling me that my call is in a queue and will be answered within the next 30 minutes, because then the question arises, do I cancel this call and try again later, or do I hold on to this call in case I lose my turn?

If I decide to hang up on this call, how long will I have to wait next time I dial this number before my  call gets selected for answering.  If I hold on, I put the phone on speaker and wait ……….. and wait………..and, yes, I can do other things while I’m waiting, but one of my lines is now tied up with tinny elevator music and going nowhere fast!

So, this leads to frustration, frustration lends itself to growling at the poor soul who does eventually answer the phone, and who then asks the inane question of where shall I direct this call?  Well, how about the people I’m supposed to be speaking to right now!!!

Doesn’t a lot of business still get done over the phone , even  in these days of internet, e-mail and social media?   Is there a problem with employing sufficient numbers of staff who can answer the phone comfortably and happily.   Do large corporations not realise how very aggravating it can be when you are put on hold even before you speak to a living breathing person.

If I have to get past the “gatekeeper” or receptionist , that’s fine, at least I have a fifty -fifty chance of explaining why I’m telephoning, and my blood pressure stays relatively calm.  It’s the call that simply doesn’t get to a human being at all that bugs me.

It’s strange -  one of the services that we are most proud of, in my office, is the fact that the telephone call gets picked up by one of the staff members.   Yes, a caller may get asked to hold while we switch the call through to the addressee, and yes, we may then move to e-mail discussions, but the very first contact that anyone has with our staff is with a real live person.

Road Rage is bad, and I’m not too keen on Telephone Rage, but while companies use machines to answer phones, there’s no getting away from it.   So, deep breathing, count to ten , then ten again, and with a bit of luck , your call will go through like a hot knife through butter.  Good Luck!!

Dan Kennedy - author of No B.S. series

If you didn’t attend the Amazing Outrageous Academy Workshop, then you have no idea what you missed!  Held in Orlando Marriott Hotel over the weekend of Friday 15th to Sunday 17th January, it was an eye opening experience for many of those  who attended.  Basically organised by Bill Glazer of the Glazer – Kennedy Insiders Circle, and starring many of the Insiders Circle leaders in the marketing field, the workshop was full of Amazing and Outrageous examples of marketing.  Not only that, it proved time and again that marketing can and should be fun.

I met some old friends, Diane and Gail of Smart Business Entrepreneur’s fame, Jackie Ewing of Ewing Enterprises, Nigel Worrall, Jim Ferrell and Richard Butler from Video Domination; and I talked to some new friends including a couple of folks who had flown over especially from the UK and Australia for this Academy.
Talk about a learning curve; my brain was fried by the end of the weekend, but my notebook was full, and the important factor is not just to attend but to put into action some of the ideas and thoughts that were flowing so freely.  It’s always good for any business person to get to workshops and  mastermind groups, simply because it helps to improve your knowledge.  Brainstorming with others is a great exercise for entrepreneurs whoare known to be the “loneliest people on the planet”.

There were, of course, loads pf photo opportunities and a couple of the photos are shown below.  Would you believe that my camera decided to take the day off after that and failed entirely to take any more?!

Anyway, besides the failure of the camera, the weekend was a busy one , with some great speakers, from Yanik Silver to Dean Hunt, interesting vendors and a real buzz throughout the 700 or so attendees.   The people that were sitting next to me were asked if they found the weekend useful to them and their businesses, and the answer was a resounding Yes.

Chatting with Bill Glazer

Jackie Ewing with Bill Glazer