As you begin to develop you advertising program you must recognize your problem and understand how a properly planned and implemented advertising program will solve the problem. When I approach people to advertise with the many avenues that I represent like www.labonitakidz.com, www.miamifuryfootball.com, or www.spicemiami.com, I hear I am not interested or that type of marketing and advertising won’t work for me. That is a part of the problem as your lack of interest may have just cost you the potential to reach new people and thus strengthen your brand or you may have decided that it won’t work for you and lost out on an opportunity to work with someone who can make it work for you. I hear I can’t afford to ad more advertising at this time to which I say what if you were to cut what you are doing with someone else in half for example instead of a full-page ad with them runs a 1/2 page with them and run a 1/4 page with me and then you can run 1/4 page somewhere else thus giving you more exposure in the market place. I hear things are slow and I can’t afford to advertise. To this I say advertising should be done when it is slow and when it is busy as the consumer perceives that a business that is advertising is a strong business. So now what is your problem? Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: What’s Your Problem?
Advertisement Ideas: How To Make Effective Marketing Choices!!!!
When you begin the marketing process you first understand the complexity of it and a great way to get a grip and make effective marketing choices is to us the 7 P’s Marketing Mix Below. When you know each phase and you truly analyze the plan you can then implement the plan and evaluate and adjust accordingly.
Advertisement Ideas Finding and Capitalizing On PR Opportunities!!!
I have posted this question before as I ask it on several occassions as I speak to people who may want to work with me and put my knowledge and expertise in this field to work for them. I have been developing ways to maximize messages for several years and I am always astounded by those who are not taking advantage of Public Relations Opportunities. This past weekend I had the opportunity to attend The Women of Faith Conference on Friday Night (10/26/12) in Sunrise, FL I was very impressed by World Vision and their presence at the event, I stopped by The Liberty University Booth to learn more about them. All the while I was loaded with literature about The Addict’s Mom (one of my clients) to hand out as I knew many of the 6,000 women in attendance may know a mother of an addicted child and may be seeking assistance for that person so I made it a point to talk to people and promote www.addictsmom.com.
As I left the Women of Faith Conference I began to think how many businesses missed out on an opportunity to promote themselves because they did nor know about the event or were so busy blaming the economy and other factors that they missed out on an opportunity to build their brand and strengthen their business. I then cam up with the idea to encourage everyone to visit www.womenoffaith.com and to see when one of theses events is coming to your community and how it can be a benefit to you and your business.
On October 27-28, 2012 I had the pleasure and honor of being The Public Address Announcer at The Sean Taylor Classic, The SUPER BOWL for Youth Football. As I announced the sponsors I began to think how many businesses could have benefitted from being part of this event if they had known about it. In two days over 2,000 people came through the gates to watch youth football. I had the opportunity to cut a video with the help of Generation Next and I immediately put it up on face book. As I have often said if make videos when ever you are at a special event and share them.
Advertisement Ideas: How To Find and Capitalize on PR Opportunities?
I am often asked JDOGG how do you find and capitalize on PR opportunities? Here are a few strategies that I have utilized to do just that.
1: Be aware of what is going on in your community and see if it is synergistic with your business and your message.
Look on the internet for special events in your area, talk to you customers about things they may be involved with and how you can be of assistance. Many times it is just being in tune and having a presence at events that will build your brand.
2: When you attend an event be prepared to do a quick video like this one.
3: Take photos and create a story to send to the media. For example the photo below with a brief story.
JDOGG Lederman Honors Community Leaders and Creates A World With Less Cancer And More Birthdays.
On March 24, 2012 The Unity Church Fellowship Hall was buzzing with joy as JDOGG Lederman hosted The Spiritual Entrepreneurs Visionary Awards, honoring outstanding community leaders for their service to the community. Proceeds from the event went to The Reaching Out To Cancer Kids Program of The American Cancer Society. 50 community leaders were honored and treated to a very special lunch provided by Subway and deserts provided by Chocolate Luxuries. The day consisted of fellowship and speakers on a variety of subjects. For more details about supporting events like this call JDOGG at 954-254-8227.
4: Find ways to provide products and services for events or how to capitalize on existing programs. For example The American Cancer Society has a program for Relay For Life, Stars and Moons, where merchants sell the Stars and Moons to customers/clients and the merchant displays them in their business. You can take a photo of the Stars and Moons with a caption (Insert your business name here) supports The American Cancer Society Relay For Life Program and recent raised (insert dollar amount) to help with research, education, advocacy, and services. “Our reason to participate in this program was driven by the fact that many of our customers have been touched by cancer and we felt this was an excellent way to give back while helping those affected by cancer,” said (insert name here).
5. Use your social media platforms to engage people and ask about ways you can be of service and value. Post how you are being of service and value to others.
Public Relations is not something that is done once in a while it is something that can be done everyday.
Every day you have something noteworthy happening in your business it is imperative that you share and capitalize on public relations. For example a local Dentist is opening up his practice from 8 PM – 10 PM on Halloween to x-ray candy, it is a shame that this has to be done. The dentist has been written about in several local papers, featured on the local news, and interviewed on the radio.
This chart will help you to find and capitalize on PR opportunities.
Advertisement Ideas: Forget The Salesman Approach!!!
When discussing sales people I often hear they are pushy, full of themselves, and will say anything to make the sale. This perception has led to many people programming themselves to say I am not interested from the first interaction. Sales is an integral part of any business be it a sole proprietorship or a large corporation a brick and mortar business or a home based business and mastering sales is a key to success. I have found that over the years it is important to overcome the perception of being a salesman because of the misconceived notion that sales people are sleazy and out for themselves. The best way to avoid being perceived in a negative way is to forget the salesman approach and become more interested in the people you are interacting with.
The first thing you are instructed to do in sales is to make cold calls. I believe this is the wrong approach as you can see from the chart that most people are not receptive to cold calls. Cold calls can be a part of the process, however there is an art to the cold call. In my 20 plus years of experience in the for profit and non-profit sectors I have found that when cold calling it is best to simply do your research and find out who the decision maker is, this can be easily done by google searches or using sources like The Hoover’s Guide To American Businesses. Many times know who to ask for will get you past the gate-keeper. I also suggest you get the gate keepers name and make friends with him or her so next time you call they will put you through. After you get to the decision maker do not begin your pitch right away tell them that you chose to contact them as you are looking to assist businesses like theirs and would like to set up an appointment to show them what you are offering. The appointment can be done via phone or in person if they are local. The key is to begin a relationship as we all know people will do business with those they know, like, and trust. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Forget The Salesman Approach!!!
I can not tell you how many times I have wanted to verbalize the sentiment of what do you mean no? This generally is a feeling when O am representing what I believe to be a great opportunity for a business like an opportunity to be part of www.forestofangels.com and be part of an event that is changing lives by creating an event where the Westfield Broward Mall in Plantation, FL will host Forest of Angels an event where businesses pay $1250 to sponsor and decorate a Christmas Tree and then choose the charity to be associated with the tree. The patrons at the mall then choose the best decorated tree and that tree’s charity is given $10,000 to further its mission and the remaining money is split amongst the other charities. The mall anticipates that 1.1 million people will visit the mall during the event. I was told I don’t have a budget to do this by a very large assisted living facility. I felt like saying you charge $5000 a month for a person to live at your facility and you can not see your way clear to invest $1250 in the community, what do you mean no? Then I realized this is why their occupation is down and their revenue is down and why they are on a downward spiral.It is not that the economy is down it is that they keep saying no to opportunities that are presented. If a new client represents $60,000 a year and you don’t spend at least $6,000 a year to attract that ne client you may remain stagnant because you said no.
I used to hear no a lot about advertising and marketing when I would sell print advertising as many business owners simply did not understand that advertising is an important aspect of their business. They would make all types of excuses and in many cases I would go back to visit only to find their business closed and boarded up with no forwarding information. I would thing again to my original question what do you mean no? I am not saying to say yes to everything but to look at things that make sense like www.forestofangels.com. www.feelthehugs.com, www.relayforlife.org, and other opportunities that may be synergistic to your business. It is when you are open to receive that great things begin to happen.
You can choose where to shop and where to spend your advertising dollars and many times you may say no only to realize that you should have said yes. Imagine your name on the speaker next to the choir, or your name on the table, or a poster above toys for tots or your name on the shopping cart. These are a few out of the box methods that work as everyone stopping by Macy’s or the food area, or dropping off a toy, or shopping would see you. Now take it a step further when people walk through Forest of Angels at The Broward Mall and see your competitor and shop your competitor because you turned down a great opportunity. So think about it and ask yourself what do I mean no?
It is proven when you give you get. People love to do business with those they perceive to be giving back to the community so supporting Forest of Angels makes sense. Visit www.forestofangels.com
Advertisement Ideas: Olympics, Jesus, Penn State and More Lead To Creative Marketing
The Spice Girls Reunited for The Closing Ceremony of The 2012 Olympics held in London. As I watched I began to think how can a business truly capitalize on the closing ceremonies and then it hit me, have a contest where you would give away Olympic related items. You could secure items relating to The 2012 Summer Olympics and also secure items relating to The 2014 Winter Games to be held in Soji, Russia. You would collect name, address, phone number, and email from the entrants and every month send out information about your business with a special Olympic Related Theme. This could be the way to spice up your sales.
Imagine being able to create a spectacle that would draw the attention of millions like The Olympics did? Well you can with a bit of creativity and the right promotion. I remember an event That The Pompano Beach Jaycess hosted many years ago called The Zanny Olympics and it was covered be local radio, TV, and newspaper outlets because of the many double entendre names events and the fact that it was also for charity. The businesses that participated all benefitted greatly by gaining brand recognition which also translated into more sales. The bottom line is getting to be known in the community and to build the reputation so people want to do business with you. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Olympics, Jesus, Penn State, and More Lead to Creative Marketing
I have witnessed many clueless business owners over the last few months, who simply do not understand without proper advertising/marketing that their business doesn’t thrive. I have heard the economy this, the economy that, things are slow, I can’t afford to advertise/market. I have heard every excuse that you can think of. I have come to the conclussion that some business people are just clueless or so set in their ways that they would rather make excuses than look for ways to improve.
Do you know what this is? It is the #1 interactive video sharing site in the world. I ask people do you have a You Tube Channel and you would be amazed how many have said no. Come on people it is free and if you use it properly you can strengthen your brand. My channel is www.youtube.com/jdogglederman. I have marketing tips, promos I have done, testimonials from clients, and I even have a short rap I did for www.feelthehugs.com. With today’s technology you can have a video a week. The video should be relevant, entertaining, and resonating. Here are some samples of how you can use You Tube: Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: GET A CLUE!!!!
I was going to title this blog Wake The F Up America but wanting to keep the blog PG related I decided to title it Wake Up and Make It Happen. How many of you have called BS on the message to the right saying it can’t be done or it takes too much money to make it happen, or I’ll never be able to do that? These negative beliefs are the beliefs that are stopping you from waking up ans making it happen. I am not here to tell you it is going to be easy because it takes some work and time. I am not here to blow smoke up your rear either and I am not going to pee on your shoes and tell you it is raining. I am here to tell you that with the right strategy and the right attitude and making the right connections you will make it happen. Let’s break down these 10 questions to help you to plan, implement, and evaluate the steps needed to take action to make it happen. I learned these in The Junior Chamber Of Commerce(Jaycees) and many have used them to become successful in their personal and professional life.
1: What is the primary purpose? This is a way to formulate your mission statement
2: What are the goals and objectives? This will help you see the big picture and to stay focused
3: What is The Manpower?This will help you to decide who you should seek to help
4:What Materials, Supplies, and Resources will be needed? This will help you in making your choices?
5: What Are The Potential Problems and Solutions?This will alleviate having to guess.
6: What is the Budget?- This will help in determining the cash outlay and pay back.
7: What are the steps necessary and the completion dates? This will help you to stay focused
8: What revisions have you made to the original plan: tweaking the plan is always good practice
9: What Changes would you recommend for a similar project?
10: Give Specific and Measurable Results and a Summary of the project? Being able to give a summary will help you to improve as you grow.
These questions were used to plan and implement and evaluate special projects that The Jaycees Ran. They translate into business as it lays out an opportunity to wake up and make it happen. It is when you have a road map to follow and adjust to that you are most successful. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Wake Up and Make It Happen
As I typed in the search on bing for the definition of presence this is what I found:
pres·ence
[ prézz’nss ]
existence in place: the physical existence or detectability of something in a place at a particular time
attendance: somebody’s attendance at an event or physical existence in a place with other people
area within sight or earshot: the immediate vicinity of somebody or something
I began to think about the question I ask to people all the time what is your presence. I ask this because it is no longer build it and they will come, it is now build it and give them a reason to come. I am currently sitting in Starbuck’s and there is a steady flow of customers I being one of them. Their presence in the marketplace and online is not by accident. People can go anywhere for coffee, however Starbucks has created the idea that their coffee is part of a lifestyle of prosperity. They have positioned themselves as the place where professional go to meet, mingle, use wi-fi, and to enjoy their coffee and other assorted items. When on sees the following logo they know it is Starbucks.
Starbucks has created a presence and an awareness through the consistent use of their logo and creating an identity. What are you doing to create your identity so as to increase your presence? Continue reading Advertising Ideas: What Is Your Presence?
This week there were two non traditional days celebrated that could have helped you to build your brand and increase your revenue one was on Friday, it was National Donut Day, the other was on Saturday, it was International Hug Day. I began to think how many businesses that rely on foot traffic knew of these two days and did anything to capitalize on them? I came up with an idea that if these two days are close together in 2013 that you can sponsor a campaign I’ll Have a Hug and a Donut. It could be done very simply by advertising two-three weeks prior to these days that on a certain day to commemorate National Donut Day and International Hug Day that at you place of business the first 150 people to make a purchase will receive a free hug and a donut.
There are many non-traditional holidays that you as a business can capitalize on and many are included in this book:
Introducing the 2012 Edition of Quirky Marketing Calendar The Ultimate Ebook to Promote Your Business 365+ Days a Year!
by Heidi Richards Mooney
The ideas in Quirky Marketing Calendar are TIMELESS! It does not matter when you buy it or where you start because these are holidays that occur every year! You can buy this calendar TODAY (or any day) and use it for the next 12 months (or longer)!
As you begin to develop you advertising program you must recognize your problem and understand how a properly planned and implemented advertising program will solve the problem. When I approach people to advertise with the many avenues that I represent like www.labonitakidz.com, www.miamifuryfootball.com, or www.spicemiami.com, I hear I am not interested or that type of marketing and advertising won’t work for me. That is a part of the problem as your lack of interest may have just cost you the potential to reach new people and thus strengthen your brand or you may have decided that it won’t work for you and lost out on an opportunity to work with someone who can make it work for you. I hear I can’t afford to ad more advertising at this time to which I say what if you were to cut what you are doing with someone else in half for example instead of a full-page ad with them runs a 1/2 page with them and run a 1/4 page with me and then you can run 1/4 page somewhere else thus giving you more exposure in the market place. I hear things are slow and I can’t afford to advertise. To this I say advertising should be done when it is slow and when it is busy as the consumer perceives that a business that is advertising is a strong business. So now what is your problem? Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: What’s Your Problem?
