Advertisement Ideas: Capitalizing on Current Events

 By now everyone knows of the scandal that rocked The Penn State Football Program. This morning the news conference announcing the sanctions was held and it created a buzz around the nation. The NCAA slammed Penn Statefor the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal Monday with an unprecedented series of penalties, including a $60 million fine and the loss of all the school’s victories from 1998-2011, knocking Joe Paterno from his spot as major college football’s winningest coach.Other sanctions include a four-year ban on postseason games that will prevent Penn State from playing for the Big Ten title, the loss of 20 scholarships per year over four years and five years’ probation. The NCAA also said that any current or incoming football players are free to immediately transfer and compete at another school.

You may be asking yourself what does this have to do with me as a business owner? The answer probably not that much unless you have ties to Penn State or sell Penn State Merchandise, however it has a lot to do with you as it gives you chance to take a stand and increase your presence in your community by doing something that promotes helping children’s charities. Imagine if you placed a note in your advertising that stated in the wake of The Penn State Sex Scandal like many business people I have been alerted to the growing problem of child abuse in our country and will be donating 10% of all my sales or bookings to The Missing and Exploited Children’s Fund. Their website is www.missingkids.com.

 

 

 You can do a project for The Ronald McDonald House in or near your community and include them in your advertising.

Think about it you can do something related to a kids charity like a backpacks for needy children program, a coat drive if you live in a colder climate or  fundraisers. The possibilities are endless and if leveraged properly with your marketing campaign you will see an increase in brand recognition and strengthen your presence in the community.

Advertisement Ideas: Capitalizing On Current Evenus – Aurora Colorado

Many read of the news of  the shooting in Aurora, Colorado and  wondered how this happens or how tragic and there were those who said I wish there was something I could do. As a business owner there are many things you can do that would bring your community together in the wake of this event. For example you could host a prayer vigil along with a blood drive and take photos and make a video and send it out to all your media contacts. You could organize a gun buy back program with your local law enforcement department.  Again the possibilities are endless when you think that you can make a difference.

       

 

Advertisement Ideas: Capitalizing On Current Events – The Olympics

This week The Olympics will kick off  in London and over the period of four weeks will be in the spotlight. Again you may be asking yourself how does this affect my business? The fact is it probably won’t have a huge impact unless you are directly related to The Olympics, however you can capitalize on this event by thinking of ways to create a buzz about what you do and creating a reason for people to do business with you.

      

You can create your own olympics with prizes for clients and participants. You can establish different programs such as Gold, Silver, and Bronze with different offers. You can create a Gold Medal with your logo and send it to your top clients or customers. You can do a collection for youth sports or The Special Olympics. The possibilities to capitalize on current events is there if you make time to be aware and then become creative.

 

 Once you decide to capitalize on the current events it is important to have a strategy  that will meet the goals and objectives of the marketing mix.  Being proactive for example by using your social media and announcing  things like To Help Support  Neglected and Abused Children stop by XYZ or book an appointment with ABC and we will donate 10% of products and services to The Center For Missing and Exploited Children.  You could post for every Gold medal The U.S. Wins Today take $1 off your purchase of $25 or more.

 After you decide what you are going to do then the next phase is to let people know what you are doing. If you have  you tube channel make a video and share it across all social media platforms, if you are blogging include it in the blog, visit other blogs and websites related to the current event and leave comments including your promotion. The idea is to capitalize on the current event.