Back in 2022, we sold what we called Building Bricks to help fund construction of our Downtown HQ/shop. And the result was -- and remains -- a tall wall on the right side of the place that bears the Bricks with the donor's name and a message. And we're proud to say so many of those donors have come to see these over time as part of a visit, including from as far away as the United Kingdom, Germany Czechia, Estonia, Brazil and Vietnam.
We had no idea if it'd work. It really did. The place has been a bigger success than even we'd imagined, and it's in large part due to the above fund allowing us to design and construct it the way Dali envisioned, without cutting corners.
There was only one problem with the process: It went by way too quickly.
Those who remember can attest that we were rushed to open the place in time for baseball season and, thus, needed to line up all our plans and permits in such short order that we limited the sale of these Bricks to a two-week span. Which a lot of people missed. And a lot of others never even learned about until it was too late.
So we're bringing the Bricks back. One final time. And in a legitimately limited quantity. (There's only so much wall, right?)
Unlike at other points along our long path, we're not in any needy situation. Things are going well financially, arguably as well as ever. But anyone who knows either of us knows we're always looking to grow both the scope of what we do and the brand itself, so we've set as one of our goals for the upcoming 10th anniversary to establish a long-term growth fund. Most of that would go into raw, visible advertising, the kind we've seldom done, some would be committed to future coverage elements more ambitious than what we currently do, and all of it would be focused on doubling our overall revenue base as we embark on our second decade.
Yeah, doubling. It's ambitious, but then, so was all of this, right?
Also, to put this specific endeavor into more human terms, the most common complaint we get from longtime readers upon visiting our place is when they see the wall and say, 'Hey, how come I didn't know about this?' Because, understandably, they might not have read a couple of Site Stuffs a couple of years ago.
So, here we go again.
It'll be the same three categories of Bricks at the same price with the same layout by the same Strip-based company to place on the same wall:
• GOLD, $1,000: Yeah, that's a ton. But I also know we've been blessed beyond words to have a few well-to-do benefactors over the years, like one of the readers who originally suggested this. These Bricks are 12x6 inches, they allow space for your name and a significant-sized message -- or just YINZER BOBBY, if you happen to be the actual Yinzer Bobby, who came to visit, too -- plus you'll get an exact replica of the Brick to keep.
• BLUE, $250: These are 10x3 inches, they allow space for your name and a message, plus you'll get an exact replica of the Brick to keep. These were the most popular.
• BLACK, $75: These were the biggest challenge to price because they're expensive enough to make that not a penny would make it to the cause if we also gave out replicas. So these are 5x2, and they allow space for your name.
If you're interested in this, we keep the process simple: Email me directly with your color/price preference at DK@DKPittsburghSports.com. From there, I'll respond and forward to Dali, who'll reach out to you for all the details, messaging, payment, etc.
We've got 154 on the wall now. There's probably not a way to get more than 300 up there. So that's the limit. And as far as a deadline, let's go for the end of May, because we want to have the whole wall done by the 10th anniversary July 23.
I'll answer any questions in comments, as always.
INSIDE THE WORKS
• My baseball coverage has, for what I'd hope would be very obvious reasons, taken a back seat to hockey. That'll remain the case for as long as the Penguins keep breathing. But one way or another, I'll be in New York to cover the Pirates-Mets series this week. And if there are Stanley Cup playoffs, as with every playoff for all three of our teams, I'll be at every game everywhere.
• Our master plan for the commenting upgrade's been submitted to our BoomPress developers. The project's underway. It'll be really cool. And best of all, the components that are already familiar to everyone, such as the appearance, won't be changing much. There's a comfort level that we're respecting.
• Once again: Our 10th anniversary celebration will be July 23 at the Downtown HQ/shop. We've already heard from quite a few of you planning to attend, including some from well out of town. For anyone looking into a longer trip, know that the Pirates and Cardinals have a three-game series at PNC Park at that time, so it's a nice double-dip.
• Important: If you're seeing ads and you're subscribed, that's NOT supposed to happen. Meaning not a single ad. Be sure you're logged in. If you can see comments, for example, you're logged in. And if you're logged in and STILL see ads, email: Help@DKPittsburghSports.com
• Everyone loving being ad-free? If you're not there yet, it's only for paying subscribers. If you aren't subscribed yet or if your subscription's expired: this is our new subscribe page. Make sure you're logged in, tap on the link, and thumb down to the bottom for the SUBSCRIBE button to buy/renew at the monthly or annual level. We also have discounts, as ever, for student subscriptions and senior subscriptions.
• Grateful that so many of you continue to leave us good reviews on outside platforms. There've been hundreds of reviews already. For anyone who hasn't yet, feel free to add your own on our Google listing, our Apple or Spotify podcast channels, our YouTube channels for the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates and, last but definitely not least, our own app, whether it's the Apple or Android version. And again, thank you!
BACK TO BUSINESS
• Our page-view numbers for the past week were 1,015,769, with 35,459 unique users over the most recent full seven-day span, April 5-11. Our most-read original piece was my column from Washington on the Penguins beating the Capitals, at 18,176.
• On the multimedia front, our podcast downloads for the past week were 97,571, plus another figure we can't access yet on a second platform, and our YouTube video views for the past week were 96,354.
• Our company social media accounts are at 53,544 followers on X, 40,518 on Facebook, 30,672 on YouTube, 14,957 on Instagram ... and already 4,279 on the new Threads!
• We make mistakes. If you see one, email: Typos@DKPittsburghSports.com
• We're often asked about our HQ/shop merch being available online, and yes, it's right here. The Downtown shop itself's open Tuesday-Saturday, 12-6 p.m.
• Anything you need, email: Help@DKPittsburghSports.com
• Thanks for reading and, as ever, for your support of this venture.
