It's No Secret: Cincinnati's Underground Ideas Come to Light

By: Jeremy Mosher, 3/23/2010

There are cans of Orange Crush, Mountain Dew, and Hoist on the table: green-bottled beers with labels worried away are held in hand, with cups of coffee, bottles of water and at least one Red Stripe, sitting empty.  Just as diverse as the choice in beverages are the professional backgrounds assembled in the Sycamore Street office of The Creative Department, as the weekend-long development session for Secret Cincinnati enters its seventy-second hour. 

Secret Cincinnati looks to make the city a better, more enjoyable place by creating an online community and database that collects and shares the best underpublicized discounts, events and places from around the city.  Rallying around egalitarian themes - Discover, Participate, Connect - the group's goal is to put the power of information in the hands of citizens, and stepping back to watch them wield it.  But this one weekend could serve an even larger purpose locally. Secret Cincinnati could be yet another asset inspiring professional entrepreneurs and giving them the tools to succeed here.
Joe Pantuso is one such entrepreneur, having come to Cincinnati to start a programming company called NeoWorx, and now, eleven years later, co-organizing the Secret Cincinnati session. Asked about his motivation, he says, "I see things in the world and I want to fix them. It's all the same spirit. I feel like I need to do all I can for Cincinnati."  To drive Secret Cincinnati, Pantuso teamed with Chris Ostoich, a UC alum originally from Baton Rouge, Louisiana who founded Blackbook Experience Management Group. In itself, their partnership expresses its very goal: bringing people together to support entrepreneurship locally.

My Feature!

One of those people is Rodney Williams, a Procter & Gamble employee who relocated to Cincinnati just eight months ago. While he contributed the perspective of a marketer and Queen City transplant, he says he got a lot back from the weekend experience, even as someone working for a multi-billion dollar international company.

"I want to always be connected with the people doing start-ups," Williams says. "That's the heartbeat of the city. You can't be innovative in a corporate setting without those connections." According to the former Washington, DC resident, increased connectivity offers value to everyone, regardless of whether or not they are personally involved in a start-up. Simply put, he says, "It's a catalyst."

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I'm somewhat of a Sneaker Guy....

I’m starting to get a grasp on this work thing!  I have neglected all of my Social Media extensions but I think I have a recipe that should increase my productivity.  I’ll start 1^st by giving you a brief update. 

Work is great but busy.  I’ve been spending this time managing the new work load but extremely excited to see my work come to life.  My Cincinnati plans have kicked off.  I can’t go into too much detail but you should already “Expect the Best”.  In the next few weeks, I plan to update the site so expect some changes. 

Today, I’m launching a new post format.  I consider myself a rather dynamic person and I want my posts to reflect who I am.  I will post 3 times a week on 3 different subjects revolving around “New”.  Mondays will be dedicated to Music, Wednesdays will be dedicated to Marketing and Fridays will be dedicated to fashion.  These are all areas of interest for me so I hope you enjoy.



This is a new day.  I'm finally semi settled in my new city.  I'm always moving a hundered miles an hour so I'm hoping that having a 9-5 will slow me down a bit.  I doubt it.  It's almost like I'm addicted to drive and ambition.  I always feel like I'm loosing if I'm not improving.  There always something "NEW" to learn, read or develop.  I'm so thankful everytime I have the opportunity to learn something new.  If you learn anything from little old me, remember to learn something new everyday and apply that learning to your dream - whatever that may be.  

It's pretty late but I guess I had an urgent message for you.  Thank you for following me.  Thank you for your support, suggestions and words of encouragement.  I have reached a new chapter in my life that I can't wait to share.  This is the beginning! 

I have started reading The New Influencers.  Once I have completed, I will write a review.  Read along with me.  The 1st few pages seems to provide exactly what I'm looking for.  I wanted to read a book regarding social media and its change of traditional marketing.  Hopefully, it fullfils my wants.