One of my enjoyments is music and songs. I find that great music and words go deep inside me and send profound messages and pleasures that go beyond mere communication and the mechanics of sound and rhythm. I enjoy the great classics (not too much long-hair), country, gospel, hymns, Dixieland, German-Swiss folk music, Hawaiian to name a few styles and sounds. Although maybe not the perfect analogy, I believe we have been singing a “song” with the publication of 25 issues of Walker Talk. The skeptical observer might say, “A song about Walker Mowers?” Yes, because our vision with the magazine has been to go beyond selling a machine to inspiring, encouraging and uplifting our customers and potential customers.
My song analogy with Walker Talk is based on three components of great music and songs:
THE MUSIC
Great music is more than a bunch of random sounds. When the sounds work together there is a melody, harmony and the foundation of bass (I play the tuba). Everything is in tune. In Walker Talk, the music is the people. Admittedly the Walker Mower is part of the “sound” of the publication, but the real music is the teamwork of Walker Manufacturing and our employees, our suppliers, Walker distributors and dealers, and Walker Mower customers and users coming together to make beautiful music. We are a family.
THE RHYTHM
The rhythm or beat is what keeps the song moving along. Walker Talk “rhythm” is publishing two issues per year, January and July, on a regular schedule. We did not just publish a few issues when we could get around to it, then get tired and quit. We have seen many other publications come and go during the last 25 years in our industry.
THE WORDS
The memorable words of the Walker Talk “song” are the stories of our customers. Real stories about real people stay fresh and hold interest for our readers; many of the words are remembered and quoted back to us as we meet some of our customers. If the magazine was just about promoting the product, it would have gone stale a long time ago.
I look back with satisfaction that the publication of Walker Talk has been worthwhile and has accomplished even more than we dreamed when we started. Readers' comments tell us that we are connecting and they like our “song”. As we look to the future, there is more to be written and more stories to be told. We plan to keep singing.
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