Article for Fortune Media

Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville

Where is Margaritaville?

Cue up the song Margaritaville by Jimmy Buffett and plug in your earbuds.

Get ready to pack lite and catch a flight. You’re leaving the mainland of reality and headed way far south of somewhere north to the edge of reality, deep in the recesses of your imagination.

As your plane taxis to the runway, one of the friendly flight attendants comes on the overhead speaker system with an announcement “welcome aboard Margaritaville Airways flight 921, destination Your Personal Paradise. We’d like to remind you that Margaritaville is a barefoot destination and we’ll be collecting your shoes prior to departing the aircraft.”

About halfway through your flight you begin to notice a change in your attitude as you approach the little latitudes of the tropics. You’re overcome with an inner sense of peace and tranquility, so you order up another Margarita.

Upon your arrival to the island you’re greeted by the local tribe known as Parrotheads. They welcome you as one of their own. You’re offered complimentary margaritas, steamed shrimp and sponge cake. You scan your surroundings in hopes of catching a glimpse of Mr. Jimmy himself, but he’s usually pretty busy writing the lyrical directions to the next leg of your journey.

Later in the evening you join your fellow Parrotheads at the tiki bar and listen to tales from the tropics about the lost shaker of salt, the last mango in Paris and the tin cup chalice. You order up a cheeseburger in paradise and a Landshark beer while trying to recall just how you ended up with a tattoo of a Mexican cutie. Is there really a woman to blame somewhere deep in my subconscious?

As the final notes of the song Margaritaville begin to fade away in your earbuds, you realize you’re in no hurry to head back to the mainland of reality. You’ve now entered in to a state of enlightenment through escapism, with a little help from “that frozen concoction that helps us hang on.”

You cue up the next song, listen to the tour guide, and let your imagination take over.

Welcome to Margaritaville……It’s a state of mind.

Excerpt From: Trop Crock Cooking

Written by: John Buskell

ISBN 978-1475050196

The no stress express to tropical crock pot cooking on island standard time with rum, romance, trop shops and trop rock music.

Trop Crock Cooking is the no stress express to cooking on island time. John Buskell (author of The BackYard Tiki Bar) & Kim Denny hadn't seen each other in 30 years. A chance encounter led to a culinary adventure, which "slow cooked" into a romantic journey. From crocktails & cocktails to blender benders, John & Kim put the fun back into slow cooking. They have taken crock pot cooking from a fall and winter event into a year round "Trop Crockin" party. You will be amazed at what you can make, bake, blend, and brew in a crock pot, which they call the "Trop Crock". The book also includes links to the hottest trop shops, and trop rock musicians on the web. You can even order a personalized Trop Crock with your own pics from their website at www.TheBackYardTikiBar.Com. So load up the Trop Crock, turn on some trop rock, surf the trop shops, and have yourself a Trop Crockin good time. Trop Crock Cooking is a one of a kind tropical crockpot cookbook filled with easy, delicious mouth watering recipes. Comes complete with cocktails to cook by, an index of trop rock artist and online radio stations to provide you with the background music for your personal paradise. Also includes a list of online trop shops, excerpts & recipes from the original 'BackYard Tiki Bar Cookbook".This book is your ticket on the no stress express to cooking on standard island time with rum, romance, trop shops, and trop rock music under the stars....way far south of somewhere north.

WRITING SAMPLES

Excerpts From: The BackYard Tiki Bar Cookbook

Written by: John Buskell

ISBN 978-0-9827161-2-0

By the time happy hour rolls around you’ll be grillin’
and chillin’ in a spectacular island setting and enjoying
dishes like grilled steak with rum butter, sweet ‘n
sour ribs, and grilled sweet sugar shrimp with
Caribbean rice and a tasty potato boat side.

We’re sure you’ll find room for dessert with choices
like cherry cheese squares, chocolate bread pudding,
pina colada cake, or our famous rum cake.

As the sun begins to set on the horizon you toast
the day with a pina colada or black cherry rum punch
before strolling over to the tiki bar and gathering
with a colorful cast of friendly characters that set
the backdrop for an outrageous evening of fun on a
distant shore.

They found themselves shipwrecked at The
Backyard Tiki Bar, and in the process uncovered
the motherload of deliciously easy culinary treasures
from distant shores, as well as a chest full of jokes,
quotes, potato boats and more…

Begin your afternoon with picnics under palm trees
and enjoy stuffed mushrooms, mango salsa
wontons, tropical fruit bites and our Famous
Whatchamacallits.

May the spirit of adventure remain alive and well in
your heart forever. Wishing you fair winds and
following seas!

Finding yourself shipwrecked at the backyard tiki
bar with two cookin’ Caribbean ramblers is truly
another tasty day in paradise.

Written by John Buskell

John Buskell

Excerpts From: Cooking With The Trop Rock Stars

Written by: John Buskell

ISBN 978-1466425699

You are about to embark on a journey of escapism that will leave you wondering, if you ever want to go back to reality.

Cooking With The Trop Rock Stars is where the food meets the music with a culinary extravaganza of tropicality. For the first time ever, the artist who bring you that “island time state of mind” share their favorite recipes. Prepare your taste buds for a mouthwatering experience that truly captures the essence of the islands,along with cocktails that will make those happy buds stand up and do the hula dance! This is not your ordinary cookbook.....it’s a way of life! You are about to embark on a culinary journey way far south of somewhere north that will leave you wondering if you ever want to go back to reality. Welcome to the Trop Rock lifestyle and the party that never ends..... John Buskel and Kim Denny (authors of Trop Crock Cooking) are the romantic culinary couple who share their passion for food, music and entertainment. In This book John and Kim were granted an all access backstage pass with some of the biggest trop rock stars in the business and they bring to you, those recipes and tales of the tropics from the stars themselves...

Business Sample

Content Marketing Strategy for OutsideAgents.com

Requested by agent owner Todd Norwood

Written by John Buskell

Overview

The Ingredients...

The Travel Radio Network.... An audio and video hosting platform with “on demand” streaming and advanced features (including user commercial inserts) for the hosting of niche specific content to be shared in a business networking enviroment and made available for the listening public. Also home of “The Travel Hour Radio Show.” The Travel Radio Network is a virtual library of content available for rebroadcast syndication on AM FM and web radio stations. This content is also available for networking through “playlist sharing” with leverage influencers across the web.

The Travel Hour Radio Show... Agents can easily create and format their very own branded “Travel Hour Radio Show.” They can create unlimited 1 hour shows in unlimited genres for multiple target audiences or themed tour packages. Agents can upload and insert intros, extros, commercials and interviews into their music playlist. The playlist can also be easily edited “on the fly” by the user and changes are instant. The Travel Hour Radio Shows are instantly made available for syndication for Radio with free unlimited rebroadcast rights....ie; Radio Station segway..... “next up on the travel hour..... Todd Crawford takes us on a Parrothead cruise through the Western Caribbean on The Travel Hour Radio Show”.....the contact info and detailsis are in the show. The show is actually an entertaining and informative “show-mercial” with destination related caribbean music and not just an “infomercial.” An Agent will be able to say “I host a syndicated travel show on the Travel Radio Network”..... That certainly adds credibility.

Travel Radio Studios...provides voice over talent for commercials and production needs. The studio is also available to produce shows for Outside Agents.com and will offer creative content advice for Outside Agents.

A Branded Radio Station....Travel Radio Studios has an inhouse radio station on standby and ready to luanch. “The Travel Radio Network” could be THE branded online station for Outside Agents.com.

The agents content “The Travel Hour Radio Show” is already being hosted and archived on the hosting platform. It's a simple as going to an agents page, then clicking the play button on their playlist and pumping the stream through the station's mixing console and out to the world (no major streaming playlist provider allows that. We own the streaming software, so we can do it). Shows could be formatted with live DJ's or just station management for a 24/7 365 stream or a combination of both. Our radio streaming host provides us with an arsenal of broadcast marketing and advertising tools for the Outside Agent as well, including U3 Streaming for for SmartTv. Pick a location, pick a backdrop, turn on the cameras, host a radio show live on location to be seen and heard on SmartTv's around the world. You now have Travel Radio Network TV. In reality, we can allow an agent to download an encoder on their phone and they could host a live show from anywhere in the world in on their phone in front of cameras or not.

Leverage Influencers... Muscians have become the “leverage influencers” in the world of corporate marketing by generating substantial social-media followings. They can build a following faster and bigger than than major retailers. Muscians reach out and engage with their fans far more personally, which helps them sell concert tickets, merchandise, cruises and tour packages. Not every business can generate the fan following of musicians, but you can still tap into their following by teaming up with them. The muscian has tremendous influence when it comes to promoting products and services. Some of the smallest indie artist have massive followings. There are 3.8 million muscians currently at ReverbNation.com.

The musician / Outside Agent / radio station business networking relationship on our hosting platform provides agenciesthe potential to be introduced to millions of artist listeners who would not ordinarily see or listen to the agents advertisements, at which point listeners can seek agencies out on their website and social media channels. The most important thing is to get in front of customers’ eyes -- or in this case ears & eyes – through your networking relationships with artist and radio stations on our site and make them aware of your product or service.

Radio Station Syndication...Radio stations are invited to join our site in exchange for a steeply discounted flat advertising rate. We are providing the station with thousands of hours of pre formatted programming content, playlist and shows including “The Travel Hour RadioShow” with free unlimited re-broadcast rights .... In reality, as a radio station owner myself.....this is a no brainer. It's easy money. There's nothing for me to really do. All I have to do is click play on your page and let your show or playlist roll across my station. I'd accept that discounted rate all day long. I don't have to format your show, select your music buildout or create your intros, extros and commercials.......you've already done it for me. It's easy money with the ability to pick up a few extra thousand listeners.....yup, that's a no brainer.....”I drop your playlist in my show and you drop my show in your playlist”....A win win situation.

Radio stations will be provided all the same networking referral benefits as everyone else on this site. Stations will be able to advertise their merchadise on the ad banners (that they control) on the playlist pages they create on our site. They will also be able to sell or swap that ad space with other members on our site. Stations will be able to create their own shows with their own advertising inserts from their existing client base, (except for competeing travel agencies). That would be a conflict of interest.

Also, there is another bonus for radio stations......they are bombarded by artist request for airplay. It's a time consuming endeavor to download an artist song from email or dropbox, then upload it into station automation software.....now, all a DJ has to do is request all song submissions be sent to The Travel Radio Network, and the DJ can fire off a single track or album with one click of a play button.

Advertising...The Travel Radio Network custom designed software allows users to upload and insert their own pre recorded commercials, intros, extros, sweepers, and jingles in to their playlist. Curently, sites like Spotify and Pandora do not allow this. They do not encourage a direct selling relationship between advertiser and muscian. Nor do they grant re-broadcast rights of their playlist. The Travel Radio Network does.

Playlist...Brands are now using playlists as a fresh approach to content marketing. A typical playlist consists of a collection of songs that are easily associated with the company. Catchy jingles aren’t the only way businesses are using music to distinguish their brands from the competition. Companies are turning to online music streaming services to fuse the two worlds of music and marketing. Unlike traditional direct sales advertisements, playlists provide a unique opportunity for businesses. Companies sponsor playlists for the listener’s pleasure rather than traditional audio advertisements.

Building a connection by giving the listener a song to associate with your agency is key for this type of content marketing. Music touches all of the emotions and gives nostalgia to even the smallest of life’s events. Outside Agents.com can tap into this by creating playlists and having them shared by the “music influencers”......the musicians, as well as radio stations and the general listening public.

Playlist Generators... They're beginning to pop up on the web. Simply Google “playlist generators” and type in a few similar artist in the search bar and a playlist is generated. Just like Pandora. Here's an example at: http://playlists.net/playlist-generator.

Playlist can also be created by musical themes and song topics, here's an example: http://www.playlistresearch.com/themes.htm

Instructions For Creating Playlist... You can find instructions for creating “playlist for business” from some of the greatest marketing minds and brand managers in world on the web. Search topics on the web are....”marketing your business with playlist”, “marketing with music” “content marketing with playlist”....etc....

Playlist titles and topics should be creative. Users can create unlimited playlist. Outside Agents are encourage to not only create their “Travel Hour Radio Show” but to also create playlist with their ageny names as a title, or a their tour package as a title, cruise title, or get really creative with names like I used on my show.....”The Sunday Morning Coffee Club”, “Tropic Jams For Your Traffic Jams”, “Late Night At The Lagoon... With The Witchdoctor of Love.”

Groups.... The Travel Radio Network software has a built in feature for creating “groups”.....a very handy networking feature for Outside Agents.

The General Public... Will be invited to create playlist and share playlist. That's all they'll be able to do.....the more the merrier.... “a rising tide floats all the boats...”

The Recipe...

Add 5,000 Outside Agents to the site

Add a few thousand muscians to the site

Add a few hundred radio stations to the site

Add the general public

Add the branded radio station

Instructions For Cooking Up Success...

The immediate benefit for outside agents (with or without musicians and radio stations) is the ability to launch their content marketing strategy with playlist (complete with ad insertions) for guest, referral partners, etc. I hope it's obvious by now that playlist are a HUGE opportunity to gain exposure to potential guest. Some of the largest companies in the world have just begun to implement this form of content marketing.

Two easy steps:

Create your own playlist and share it.

Get on an influencer's playlist and share it.

Invite musicians.....The Travel Radio Network is offering benefits for musicians (Outside Agents & radio stations) that ReverbNation.com does not offer.....ReverbNation host 3.8 million artist.

Here are the benefits for musicians ( they are similar for Outside Agents and Radio Stations).

Benefits For The Artist:

Artist gets to keep 100% of their profits from music download sales.

Artist can sell and insert their own audio commercials in a playlist and keep 100% of the profits.

Artist can sell and insert their own video commercials / video inlay commercials or ads and keep 100% of the profits.

Artist gets two banner ads to sell (or swap with a business) on each of their pages and keeps 100% of the profits.

Artist can upload unlimited tracks, playlist, albums, genres and videos. That's a lot of pages ready for the advertisements you sell or swap with a business advertiser.

Artist can display merchandise for sale in their banners or promote their sponsors.

Artist can create / format shows to be re-broadcast on radio (no major streaming sites currently allow this). The Travel Radio Network is granting free unlimited re-broadcast rights.

The Travel Radio Network is a platform that encourages a direct relationship between business and artist for potential sponsorship.

Invite Radio Stations....especially web radio stations. Many web radio staions are small time operators with significant listnership. They host a few hours a week with a “LIVE DJ”....then the rest of their stream is on auto pilot with a playlist in their station automation. They always need fresh content, advertising dollars and listeners. The Travel Radio Network provides them that.

Start Networking...That's self explanatory.

The Travel Radio Network is a platform that fosters relationship building. Those relationships and playlist (minus advertising inserts) can then start networking together on sites like Spotify with 50 million listeners.......Pandora with 80 million listeners and so on.....

It's all about relationships, retention and referrals.

Books by John Buskell

Business Sample

Written by John Buskell

For: Resort Broadcast Consultants

Resort Broadcast Consultants is a group of professional broadcasters, programmers, voice over talent, technicians, and web designers that specialize in creating family friendly radio programming custom tailored for targeted niche market audiences.

We work in conjunction with your marketing and advertising team to create and produce professional broadcast ad copy with our voice over talent that are results driven for maximum profit potential for numerous revenue streams via short range or long range FM/Web simulcasting, and mobile phone apps. Your in house advertisements are an opportunity to showcase real estate for sale, investment opportunities, vacation specials, etc.

Our programming professionals, broadcasters, and voice-over talent can even create ads, sweepers, and drop in's to promote your property's bar or restaurants breakfast, lunch, dinner, and happy hour specials. We can do the same for your activities calendar to promote upcoming events, as well special offers and incentives.

Resort Broadcast Consultants employs a software driven solutions technology that allows us to split advertising across FM transmission and the web simulcast. In other words....local ads that are relevant to happy hour specials to bring in the local community will only be heard by the local community on the FM Transmission, while advertisements relevant to vacation planning or real estate sales will be heard on a global level. You can custom tailor this so that all your in house ads are heard on both sides of the transmission (FM and Web Simulcast) or a combination of both if you choose. Your mobile phone apps can be set up the same way with textural and graphics ads. All advertising can be turned on or off on a local, national, global level. We can do this in 244 countries through our radio streaming host.

Resort Broadcast Consultants has the technology, the talent and expertise, with an abundance of resources and a proven track record. We know how to build your station and drive traffic to a website booking engine, your resort, a restaurant, or a tiki bar on the beach anywhere in the world.

Web Technical

Social Media Simulcasting Explained

Written by John Buskell

Social Media Simulcasting is by far the most interactive and engaging form of multi channel brand awareness on the web. Hands down it can't be beat. The only way you could possibly get any closer to a web visitor or mobile user would be to reach through the screen and hand them a sample of your product.

Social Media Simulcasting defined: Your private label 24/7 "LIVE" web radio station or Tiki Island Radio + Broadcast Host + Social Media Channels + Facebook + Brand + Following = interactive and engaging commentary and sharing across all social media channels.

Social Media Simulcasting can be measured with analytics to determine if you are actually reducing client acquisition cost while increasing brand awareness and converting visitor traffic to revenue. With todays broadcast technology software you will have all the analytics you could possibly want.

Traditional social media speaks at people, not to people, and although every brand out there is doing its best to make it interactive...people are just getting numb from it. The web sphere has turned into a wordlwide trade show with social media hawkers screaming "like this, share that, please repost, look over here, watch this video, comment, click here, etc...." Instead of creating a friendly community with relationships that lead to retention and referrals....the social media hawkers have created something similar to a cable tv network with a million channels and nothing on.

Big Box retailers have been pulling out of Facebook....Why? The expert marketing gurus said "Facebook is a place where people just hang out, socialize and fun." WOW!! What a revelation! So the retailers ran. I don't think anyone hung around long enough to figure out a way to make their product or service more exciting to talk about, but that's ok, because now there is plenty of room for your Social Media Simulcast.

Social Media Simulcasting with your own private label / branded web radio station will simultaneously broadcast and share your social media content (post and replies) in conjunction with your music and content format to engage audiences, build brand awareness, and encourage eWOM (electronic Word of mouth) sharing and promotion while interacting live “on the air” with discussion, commentary, via a radio DJ, broadcast personality, guest host, company spokesperson, etc. It’s affordable with today’s technology and your station is formatted to your specifications, with your social media content, music, etc.

Far Out n Funky

Written by John Buskell

CAPTAINS LOG:

Way far south of somewhere north...... shipwrecked at the back yard tiki bar with a colorful cast of cocktails for the crew’s liquid recreation...ordered up a case of confusion and a skanky
wench... the stumblin’ gecko and his friend, the drunken parrot Jamaica me crazy with laughter. There is no closing time at this backyard tiki bar, however, I may need a tail of the lizard in the
morning before catching a Caribbean breeze back to reality on the mango mailboat. The lazy barracuda and Blackbeard’s wench arranged transportation. I bid farewell to the topless
mermaid, but shall return soon to my shipmates and good friends at the backyard tiki bar, where everyone sees the world in tropic vision… coming to a glass near you soon.

Legal

Written by John Buskell

For: The Law Firm of Wayne Cymek, Esq.

WCBM Radio Spot, Baltimore, MD.

Re; Maryland Inheritance Protection Program

(Written in first person).

Hello,

This is Wayne Cymek, attorney and founder of the Maryland Inheritance Protection Program. This powerful program provides the citizens of Maryland an affordable alternative to expensive trust.

The Maryland Inheritance Protection Program will show you how to pass your assets to loved ones while avoiding major probate, expensive attorney’s fees, continuing court cost, and third party creditors, while avoiding major capitol gains, and addressing Medicaid issues.

In many cases this information has been concealed from the public in order to serve the financial interest of the professionals. The Maryland Inheritance Protection Program has put an end to that.

If I remind you of any attorney you have ever worked with before, I don’t expect you to do business with me. Would you say that’s a fair statement?

I welcome you to call my office at 410-000-0000, that’s 410-000-0000.

Press Release

Written by John Buskell

July 27, 2010

THIS IS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

ESCAPE TO A TROPICAL CULINERY PARADISE!!! “The BackYard Tiki Bar Cocktails and Cooking-Island Style” Cookbook Is Here!!!

Batten down the galley doors and hold on to your pots and pans! John Buskell & Lori Nelson are two Caribbean souls who shared a lot of laughs, a few tears and a jambalaya cook off that led to recipe swapping and their first cookbook ~ guaranteed to have you grillin’ and chillin’ in tropic vision!!

Discover the motherload of deliciously easy culinary treasures from distant shores and a chest full of jokes, quotes, philosophies and more in “The BackYard Tiki Bar Cocktails and Cooking-Island Style” cookbook. You’ll find yourself south of somewhere south with a colorful cast of cocktails and enjoying dishes like grilled steak with rum butter and sweet sugar shrimp with Caribbean rice and a tasty boat side. Don’t forget dessert like “Pina Colada Cake”, it’s the Stumblin’ Gecko’s favorite!

Being shipwrecked at the BackYard Tiki Bar with these two cookin’ Caribbean ramblers is truly another tasty day in paradise. To begin your island cuisine adventure order online at www.lulu.com.

The official book launch is Wednesday, July 28, 2010 ~ 7:00 PM where it all began!

SERRA BROTHERS: 2021 LIBERTY ROAD, SYKESVILLE, MD 21784

A portion of the proceeds from the raffle of “The Tiki-Margarita Gift Basket”, which includes an autographed copy of the book will be donated to the Wounded Warrior Project.

John and Lori will be available to “Meet and Greet” and talk all things tropical!!!

For additional information, please contact: ~

John & Lori are available for public appearances, private parties and book signings….they’ll also furnish the Tiki Bar!

Press Release For Television Show

Carroll Employment Television

Carroll County Public Television

Web Copy

Written By John Buskell

For Immediate Release:

Producer Mark Hewitson has joined forces with John Carroll & Dr. Mark Fraser, to produce a television pilot that puts our citizens back to work with a streamlined process that matches employees and employers. We have access to some positions you won’t find anywhere else, but here on Carroll Employment Television.

Who should watch and why?
Are you looking for employment?
Helpful tips on how to write your resume
Advice and tips on how to interview
Chances to hear what HR people are looking for with an applicant
Inside scoop on what how to dress (Dress for success)
Submit your resume to CETV and we will help you find your next job.

And so much more to learn and see.
Are you an employer looking for employees?
We have access to hundreds of resumes
We’ll screen the applications for you
We’ll post your positions on our specialized websites
Would you like to join us on the set of Carroll Employment Television?

Share your experience as an HR executive with the community
A chance to share your opportunities with our viewers

Dr. Mark Fraser has over 30 years experience in human resource management. He brings to the show a lifetime of experience & outstanding credentials. He is also a highly- decorated pilot and combat officer who saw active duty in Vietnam, Panama, Grenada, and the Balkins, and served as the military attaché at American embassies in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, and the United Arab Emirates.

Together with his wingman Jason Carroll, they screen the opportunities, and match employees and employers. Their mission is to put people back to work.

The interview starts here and starts now on Carroll Employment Television.

Dr. Mark Fraser Ph.D. 443-000-0000 mfraser@~