Posts Tagged ‘event’

eHarbor’s first 2 softball games dramatic

Friday, August 14th, 2009

By Robert Lockard

eHarbor, Inc. played its second game of the fall season on Wednesday, August 12, 2009. But before I share the details of that game, I would like to shed a little more light on the drama of the first game. I didn’t quite do it justice in my blog entry, “eHarbor softball rides again,” so here’s the rest of the story.

eHarbor softball playerAfter staying neck and neck with the opposing team for the first several innings, our eHarbarians managed to pull ahead by five runs in the second-to-last inning. Then, in the top of the last inning, the other team scored five runs to tie the game.

The air was tense as eHarbor took the field in the bottom of the inning to try to eke out a win. Under that pressure, the first two batters got out in short order. It was all up to the next batter. And he came through, slicing the ball for a double. Then one more player came up to the plate with a runner in scoring position. And once again the amazing happened and he got a great hit that drove his teammate home, barely giving us a victory, 9-8.

Whew! What an exciting story from a company that specializes in Internet marketing and ecommerce. By the way, one batter went 4 for 4 with two doubles and two singles, and two other players went 3 for 3.

Now I’ll briefly discuss our second game. We led in the first inning, but then the other team managed to get the upper hand and win the game. We hope to keep having fun this season, though. Stay tuned for more updates on eHarbor, as well as ecommerce topics.

eHarbor softball rides again

Monday, August 10th, 2009

By Robert Lockard

I love keeping promises. In my earlier blog entry, “eHarbor, Inc. softball ends season in good form,” I said, “[eHarbor’s softball team] might play again in the fall, so I’ll keep you posted if we do.” Guess what. We are playing softball again, and I get to keep you informed on how we do again.

eHarbor softball players

The eHarbor softball team, which we affectionately call the eHarbarians, ended its spring season with their best record ever, 6 wins and 4 losses. We then made it two games into the playoffs before being eliminated. It was a fun rollercoaster.

For our first game of the summer/fall season, we played a team sponsored by a local Hogi Yogi restaurant. Ironically, Hogi Yogi provided the food for our company-wide meeting earlier this month where the July MVP was announced. Funny. Anyway, our team played on Wednesday, August 5, 2009 at a new field in Orem, Utah, instead of Provo.

And we won!

That’s right, we fought hard and brought home a 9-8 victory. Hopefully we’ll have many more victories to report as the new season progresses. Be sure to keep coming back to the eHarbor Blog for updates on our company, as well as helpful tips on Internet marketing and ecommerce.

eHarbor MVP gives great customer care

Thursday, August 6th, 2009

By Robert Lockard

Derek Anderson, a customer-service representative at eHarbor, Inc., was named eHarbor’s Most Valuable Player at our monthly company-wide meeting on Monday, August 3, 2009.

eHarbor MVP: Derek AndersonSince coming to eHarbor three months ago, Derek has worked tirelessly to give our clients excellent support when they call in with questions. In fact, in July he set the record for taking the most calls in a single day: more than 150. Amazing. Customer service is important at eHarbor and its subsidiaries. I discussed how essential it is to take care of ecommerce customers in my blog entry, “Angry ecommerce customers fight back on Twitter.” Good customer care can make the difference between success and failure in any industry, but particularly online.

Returning to Derek, he is quite competitive, and not just in his work. He enjoys a good sporting event with coworkers and other friends. And he usually wins. Congratulations on this award, Derek!

This is the second time I’ve spotlighted the eHarbor MVP. You might remember last month’s winner, Alisha Walton. You can read about her remarkable story in my blog entry, “eHarbor June MVP returns to work after breaking her neck.” We have many great employees to spotlight. I’ll keep you posted on them at the start of each month.

eHarbor, Inc. softball ends season in good form

Tuesday, July 7th, 2009

By Robert Lockard

This is my last blog entry about eHarbor, Inc.’s softball team this season. We played what turned out to be the last game of our season on Wednesday, July 1, 2009. The playoffs were a double-elimination tournament and we lost our second game.

eHarbor Inc. softball fans

We started our season with a perfect 5-0 record. We then ran into some of our league’s best teams and our success was tempered with four losses. But our final record of 6-4 was still the best record we’ve ever had. We put up a great fight in the playoffs, losing after a great effort in our first game and then having our post-season come to an end last week.

All in all, it was a great season. We might play again in the fall, so I’ll keep you posted if we do. Even though the season is over, we’ve still got plenty of great information about eHarbor that I’ll be happy to share in future blog posts. Not to mention all the important updates on ecommerce and Internet marketing.

Stay tuned to the eHarbor Blog!

Celebrating Independence Day in style

Friday, July 3rd, 2009

By Robert Lockard

John Adams, one of the Founding Fathers who signed the Declaration of Independence and went on to become the second president of the United States, wrote on July 3, 1776:

I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more.

Fourth of July fireworks

What he was referring to was, of course, the Fourth of July. His words are literally fulfilled every year on July 4 as we celebrate our independence as a nation and a people. Few holidays measure up to the greatness of this one, in my mind.

Here are some interesting facts I recently learned about the Fourth of July, which I would like to share with you:

  • The first Fourth of July celebration as held one year after the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776. In Bristol, R.I. and Philadelphia, citizens fired 13 gunshots in honor of the 13 colonies.
  • Bristol is also noteworthy for having the highest number of consecutive Fourth of July celebrations, starting in 1785.
  • The term “Independence Day” was first used in 1791.
  • In 1870, nearly a hundred years after the country was founded, Congress made Independence Day a federal holiday.
  • In 1931, Independence Day became a paid federal holiday.

I must say I’m impressed by the Fourth of July celebrations I’ve encountered in Utah. As a newcomer to this land, I am excited to see what America’s Freedom Festival holds this year. It will culminate in the Stadium of Fire at Brigham Young University’s LaVell Edwards football stadium on July 4. I don’t know if I’ll be able to attend that event, but I hear it will be great.

Be sure to keep coming back to the eHarbor Blog for tips on ecommerce and Internet marketing. But in the meantime, enjoy your Independence Day!

The photo of fireworks in Salt Lake City, Utah is from Flickr, and it is the copyright of deltaMike.

eHarbor, Inc. softball fights valiantly in loss

Wednesday, July 1st, 2009

By Robert Lockard

What a game our softball team played on Wednesday, June 24! The other team pulled ahead to an early eight-point lead, but eHarbor, Inc. closed the gap and remained tied for several innings before the other team finally scored a few runs at the end to barely beat us. It was an exciting game, even though we lost.

eHarbor softball player swinging

Here are the highlights of our first postseason game:

  • Two players went 4 for 4.
  • One of those players got an in-the-park home run, two doubles and a single.
  • The other player got two triples and two doubles.
  • eHarbor CEO Oliver Bigler managed to hold onto the ball at home plate as a runner smashed into him. Thanks to his effort, the runner was out.

The good news is we are not out of the running, yet. This is a double-elimination tournament, so if we win our game tonight, we’ll still be able to move on. I hope to report good news in my next blog entry about our softball team.

My eHarbor summer party adventure

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

By Robert Lockard

As promised, here is a follow-up to my blog entry on the eHarbor summer party, which was held on June 12 and 13. That was a fun event. Many eHarbor, Inc. employees came to Kelly’s Grove in Hobble Creek Canyon, near Springville, Utah, on that Friday night to enjoy a barbecue and play games.

eHarbor, Inc. summer party games

I had expected to watch a movie on Friday night, but we instead sang karaoke. It was a lot of fun, and we learned more about each other’s personalities through our singing than we would have by watching a movie. Oliver Bigler, our CEO who was recently profiled in BusinessQ magazine, emceed the karaoke and he even sang a couple of songs, himself.

My wife and I don’t have any camping supplies, so we decided to go home that night instead of camping out with many of the other families in attendance. The sky had been threatening to rain most of the evening. We heard thunder and saw lightning several times before we finally headed home.

On the way, the rain became so heavy it was almost blinding. It felt like a flash flood. Being from Washington, I’m used to heavy rain, but this was beyond what I’m normally prepared for. It was as though someone was dumping a bucket of water on our windshield every second we drove.

We stayed off the freeway and took a regular road home because I could hardly see the lanes, and I felt safer going at a slower speed. We made it safely to our destination and enjoyed the rest of the storm from the safety of our home. I love falling asleep to the sound of rain. The thunder was elegant, as well.

On Saturday morning, I had planned on returning to the eHarbor summer party, but the clouds still threatened to rain, so I thought it best to do something indoors. I heard the E-lympics were fun, though. I would have liked to have seen and participated in them. Oh well.

eHarbor, Inc. softball humbled by 2 losses

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009

By Robert Lockard

After its 26-0 blowout victory on May 27, the eHarbor, Inc. softball team was humbled by two losses, one on June 3 and the other on June 10. The good news is that tonight our team has a chance to return the favor to the team that beat us by more than 10 points on June 3.

eHarbor softball player swingingHere are some of the highlights of the June 10 game:

  • One eHarbor player batted 1.000
  • Three of our players went 3 for 4
  • One of the players who went 3 for 4 hit 3 doubles
  • One player hit an out-of-the-park home run

Tonight’s game will be our last game of the season before heading into the post-season playoffs. Our record is 6-3 right now, which is pretty good for a company that focuses on ecommerce and online marketing. Speaking of which, we’ve got a great blog entry on search engine optimization and computer viruses on Friday. Stay tuned to the eHarbor Blog!

Rain can’t stop eHarbor summer party

Thursday, June 11th, 2009

By Robert Lockard

Those of you who read my April blog entry “eHarbor summer party coming in June” know this weekend is the time of this long-awaited event. It will be held in Hobble Creek Canyon, near Springville, Utah. On Friday night, we’ll enjoy a barbecue and outdoor movie. I’m definitely excited for that.

Rainy camp site

eHarbor, Inc. employees will be able to camp out that night and compete in water e-lympics Saturday morning. Here are some of the activities the e-lympics will include:

· Water volleyball

· Watermelon-eating contest

· Water-balloon toss

· Water kickball

· Hula-hoop contest

· 3-legged race

I hope the clouds will begin to part and the rain will stop by Friday. I grew up in the Puget Sound area of Washington state, so I’m used to rain and clouds. But here in Utah, I’ve been trying to get used to the extreme cold of winter and extreme heat of summer. I don’t mind having cool weather in the summer, but it’s starting to throw me off a little.

Anyway, even if it’s not the best weather, I’m sure we’ll have fun. On Monday, I watched a play of “Beauty and the Beast” at the Scera Shell outdoor theatre in Orem, Utah. It rained on us for a while leading up to the start of the play. But I enjoyed that play so much I hardly minded the rain at all.

Before the summer party, each eHarbor department (Support, Marketing/PR, Design, etc.) was asked to create a flag to represent it. There were some really creative designs, and I am excited to see them at this event. I hope to get some great pictures of them and other things for a future blog post.

The photo of the tarp sagging with rain is from Flickr, and it is the copyright of nalilo.

Triumph after defeat for eHarbor, Inc.

Thursday, May 28th, 2009

By Robert Lockard

eHarbor, Inc.’s softball team suffered its first loss on Wednesday, May 20, 2009 to the only other undefeated team in the Provo/Orem area’s recreation league up to that point. We lost by the closest margin for either team this year: 11-14.

eHarbor, Inc. softball teamBefore its first loss, eHarbor won the two previous games by 12 points and 15 points, respectively. You can read about those victories in my last two blog posts about eHarbor softball: “eHarbor unbeatable after 5 games” and “eHarbor softball wins by 15 points.”

Last night, however, our team bounced back, redeeming itself with a stunning blowout. Expect more eHarbor victories as the season continues.

I will return to ecommerce and online marketing on Monday with an awesome blog post about changes coming to the paid-search industry. Stay tuned!