What do you do?

Remember last September, I told you I changed companies? Well, that’s true. I’m the marketing manager for Alpha Technologies, a company that makes back-up battery systems.

Now that I just typed that sentence, I’ve reread it and decided it is the absolute worst way to describe what I do. There are about 12 people on the planet who would be at all interested, and most of those either work for my company or a competitor.

I’ve read in a few places that when someone asks you what you do, actually tell them what you do. Don’t just give them your title. So how about this:

Do you remember that huge blackout back east in 2003? From Manhattan to Detroit, in Canada and the United States, millions of people were without power: totally without power. No traffic lights. No air conditioning. No gas pumps. No refrigerators. It was practically the middle ages. Accept for the telephone system in Ontario. The telephone lines in and around Ontario stayed active. Grandmothers could call families. Injured people could call for help. People with laptops could still “dial-up” to the internet and get some news.

My company makes those systems. I promote my company in the press, in the market and in the community. I’m the marketing manager for a company that makes battery back-up systems.

What do you do?