Don Dyches has been the director of business development at W.G. Pitts Company for a little over a month. He is responsible for the public relations, marketing and all new business development for W.G. Pitts Company, a general contractor, design builder and construction manager.
“That means I get out and meet clients and prospects, We are a design/build company, so I work with the client to fulfill their needs whether it is on a design/build or whether we are a contractor managing the subcontractors or as project manager. I’m basically there with the client until the contract is signed and then I maintain contact with the client during the process.”
YOUR VISION FOR THE COMPANY?
“Over the last 10 years the company has established itself, so now my goal is to help Will [Pitts] manage the growth of the company. We are getting more into the development side of things and will be developing an office park, Cobblestone Professional Park, in St. Augustine. I want to target the clients that we want to work with and continue to build on our brand and our image.”
CHANGES IN THE FUTURE?
Dyches said the company is launching a residential division building luxury custom homes.
“We have one home on the river in Rivertown that we are building for a local doctor. We also have three homes that we are building in Oyster Bay.” They had considered coming up with a new name for the residential division, but since they have been in residential communities in the past when building amenity centers, they felt the name W.G. Pitts Company would be easily recognizable. “We’ve always been there whether the people recognize us as a home builder or amenity center builder, the name is still recognizable.”
COLLEGE
Dyches has a bachelor’s degree in risk management from the University of Georgia.
HOW DID HE GET INTO MARKETING?
Dyches’ father has had a long career in the insurance business. He earned his degree in risk management to initially follow in his father’s footsteps, but realized that is not what he wanted to do. “I started volunteering for the Masters golf tournament when I was 11 years old.” He got a job as events director for the Greater Augusta Arts Council, which eventually led him to marketing jobs in the sports arena.
HIS HISTORY?
Dyches has more than 11 years experience in event development, management, marketing and promotions. He spent seven years in the professional sports management industry. His responsibilities ranged from coordinating and managing the Professional Water Ski & Wakeboard Tour to serving as tournament director of the Southern Open in Columbus, Ga. for the PGA Tour. “I traveled around the country with the PGA Tour working with Championship Management Events going in and filling a lot of different roles. I got a lot of good experience.” The tournament he ran fell off the Championship’s tour schedule, so in order for him to stay in golf, he would have had to more north. He and his wife loved Jacksonville so he started his own event company, B & D Tents and Events. He recently closed the company and went to work at W.G. Pitts Company. Dyches is also a licensed real estate sales associate.
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE HELP NOW?
“I have a great love of events, but all of that experience basically gave me very well-rounded business knowledge. I’ve done it all. I’ve picked up cigarette butts after an event and negotiated contracts with CEOs. From A to Z, I’ve had really good exposure and in the W.G. Pitts Company I saw a company poised to really do great things.”
JACK-OF-ALL-TRADES?
“I’ve always worn a lot of hats and kept a lot of plates in the air. My personality is such that I like to have a lot of different things going on at once and kind of bounce back and forth between them. It’s a challenge organizationally at times, but I have always been a jack-of-all-trades, master of none type of person.”
WHAT IS THE BEST MARKETING ADVICE YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED?
“You can’t hit the target unless you can see it.”
ADVICE TO THOSE GETTING INTO MARKETING?
“Meet as many people as possible. If you are truly just starting out, experience comes at a price so you have to invest in yourself whether it is through an internship or taking a position clearly below you. If you have to sweep the floors to get in with the Jaguars, then sweep the floors. You have to be willing to do whatever it takes. Your reputation is everything. Your reputation as a hard worker is only earned through that, hard work.”
CHURCH?
Christ Church Mandarin. He serves as a Sunday school teacher and on the steering committee for many church special events.
- by Michele Newbern Gillis