promoting usability

I was reading an interesting article about the initial struggle to set up a user experience group in a corporate environment. I am facing some of these very issues in my current setup. There are many roadblocks and it is an uphill task! The first step is the toughest as it involves changing mindsets. Most people have the notion that Usability is only about 'look and feel' ...add some pretty colors and cool graphics...and voila, you're there!
In the early stages, reaching out to people across the organization and trying to give them the right perspective is important. Usability addresses the needs of the end user and it is much more than just visual appeal. Its all about organizing and then presenting information in a way that is easily understood. Its about simplified navigation flows allowing the user to complete tasks effectively. So, how do we as usability practitioners convince the uninitiated?
Some ideas:

- Get senior management buy-in
- Conducting roadshows among the development teams
- Demonstrate ROI to the sales teams
- Blogs / articles on the company intranet to reach more people and invite participation
- Events / workshops around interesting themes
- Appoint UE champions within various groups to take the cause further. Reward and recognize.

Once the initial efforts start to show results, usability will become a natural part of the process....a 'must-have' .