I walked by a few businesses that I had once approached about advertising when I worked at Forum Publishing and then when back to them when I left Forum to see if they were doing any advertising.These businesses were so busy finding reasons not to advertise that they are now boarded up. Why is it when sales are down the first thing that a business wants to cut is advertising? If people do not know who you are and you are not promoting your business you will eventually go out of business. In today’s market place a business has many chances to advertise and those that choose not to advertise choose to die a slow death. I have seen this cycle happen many times in the last 2 years. I approached a local yogurt shop about advertising and marketing their business and was told I don’t have a budget. Hello the first thing to think about after opening a store is to think how am I going to get the people to come to me and spend money and then come back to me. This yogurt store ran an ad for 1 week in a local community paper expecting an influx in business well guess what a one time ad is not going to work you need frequency and consistency. The key is to have people see you and get to know your brand. Advertising needs to be proactive and not reactive. Think of what is coming up and how you can capitalize on upcoming events. You Know from The Day After Thanksgiving until December 23 that the consumer will be geared toward buying and that is a great time to run an ad wishing everyone a Happy Hanukkah, A Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year with some other incentives to shop. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Advertise or Die!!!
Advertisement Ideas: Hello America, Time To Wake Up!
As I was out collecting yesterday (11/2/12) for The American Cancer Society Relay For Life Of West Boca Raton I stopped by Grande Pizza and met Jeff, the General Manager who represents the owner, I asked him to make a donation. His initial response was no I am not in a position to do so and I told him I was only asking for $5 he continued to make every excuse and then finally giving me the $5 I asked for and saying his father passed away from the complications of having cancer. I thanked him and handed him the card with the 1-800-acs-2345 number, which is a 24 hour a day 7 day a week hotline that people touched by cancer can call. I left thinking Hello America, Time To Wake Up!!!!. It is time to wake up to the fact that if you are in business and you want to succeed you are going to have to be open and receptive to giving or at least listening and getting to know the person that is asking for your support.
For example in my case I walk into your business you don’t know me and you immediately use your programmed response I am not interested or I am not in a position to help and you lose an opportunity to learn about the fact that I host an Internet Radio Show and I do Shout Outs to businesses that support my effort and have a listenership of over 600 people each week, or that I have over 2,100 friends on Facebook, a Facebook group, and over 1,500 followers on twitter, as well as a large network on linked in. So you say no and I say thank you and you never get the opportunity to build a relationship that can enhance your business. For Jeff at Grande Pizza he will get the $5 back from as the next time I am in that area I am stopping in for a couple of slices and an iced tea. In addition I will be encouraging people when they are on 18th street just West of Military Trail to stop into Grande Pizza and support them. Any business that has ever supported my efforts with charity has benefitted in some form. There is Lou Bachrodt Cheverolet who supported a Holiday Shopping Spree I hosted for many years with The Jaycees and as a result when it came time to buy a car I bought my car from them. I am a strong believer in helping those that help you and I have seen first hand what can happen when a business partners with a charity and creates advocates for their business. Ask yourself the next time some comes into your business or calls your business what can I do for them to be of service and value?
As a business person you must wake up to the fact that everyone walking through the door of your business or calling on your business is a potential advocate for your business. The time is now to wake up and stop making excuses. I have heard it all when I go out collecting and promote The American Cancer Society Relay For Life of West Boca Raton and ask for small donations and I have overcome them all as there is not an excuse nor a legitimate reason why any business can not support the community. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Hello America, Time To Wake Up!!!!
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!!!
Advertisement Ideas: Hey Mitt and Barack Stop The Mudslinging!!!!
This blog entry was brought on by the amount of people I hear complain about all the mudslinging going on in politics. I think it is time we put and end to all the mudslinging not only in politics but in all aspects of our society. Imagine if all politicians and all companies began to stand on their own merits and espouse the value and benefit of electing them or the using their product. The mudslinging has trickled down so much that it has created a problem in schools and other activities as it has now become normal to bad mouth people. I have found that successful people do not need to bad mouth others. Successful people are able to build themselves up and show how they are of value and service to others. Part of the problem is that the general public begins to accept the mudslinging as normal and they become desensitized to it. Imagine id these two candidates came out and stated what their accomplishments were and what their plans are instead of bashing each other what would happen? This will not happen as the general public has bought into the idea that this is the way things are done. As a result IBM who makes a good product and Apple who makes a good product decide to tear each other down in their respective commercials and they both lose market share. We have seen this with Samsung as well poking fun at the competition with their commercials. Locally the mudslinging has trickled down to Home Depot and Dolphin Carpet and Tile as they now are both airing commercials that are negative. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Hey Mitt and Barack Stop The Mudslinging!!!!
When doing your story the important question to ask is are you media worthy? Most entrepreneurs have a great back story, however they forget to tell it and thus miss out on the media exposure as they may not believe it is media worthy. Every story you have to tell is media worthy. Remember it is not what you say but how you say it. The steps to make your story media worthy are:
1: Frame Your Story – Like a picture you want to make sure your story is relevant, entertaining, and resonating. For example October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I lost a cousin and an uncle to breast cancer(yes men get breast cancer), I am involved in The Relay for Life, I have raised over $8,000 in the last 8 years, and in 2008 was awarded The Hope Award from The American Cancer Society South Palm Beach Unit. This year I implemented a fundraising program called Points For The Cure. Now I have framed the story.
2: Have A Catchy Headline With Keywords – After you frame the story you want to come up with a catchy headline that includes some keywords so when you put it out it will get picked up and looked at online and offline.
3: Write Your Story With Keywords – As you begin your story make sure you have keywords in the first sentence and through out the story so it will be ranked high in search engines as most publications now have digital versions online.
4: Proof the Story and Begin to Post Throughout All Your Platforms- Once you finish your story and you begin to post it you will see the results and you will begin to increase your worth in the eyes of the media. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Are You Media Worthy?
Everyone is so quick to judge and say hey you have an attitude problem that they are missing out on opportunities to make a positive difference in their personal and professional life. I was exploring the attitudes of those in business that I perceive to be successful and I have found that they are positive, non-judgmental, and are open to receive. I believe that many times an entrepreneur who blames the economy or other factors and doesn’t look for the opportunities as they are being presented and puts up excuses and blockages often finds themself in a heap of trouble. I have seen many entrepreneurs in the last year struggle not for anything else but because of their attitude.One entrpreneur was complaining and bad mouthing his competition and I began to think if that is how he speaks about them how is he speaking about me, as a result I stopped doing business with that person and when I see that person it is a cordial hello and nothing else as his negativity is not something I choose to engage in. I have been told on several occasions by people you have an attitude problem and I say thank you for pointing that out. I have an attitude that in some case may rub someone the wrong way as I am extremely outgoing, I am overly confident, and I speak my mind for some they just don’t how to handle this for others appreciate it and applaud and celebrate it, which has led to my idea of Some Will, Some Won’t, Some Waiting, So What, Next. I have learned that I will not resonate with everyone, however those that I do resonate with will want to do business with me. To those that choose not to for whatever reason I say their loss. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: You Have An Attitude Problem
Advertisement Ideas: Be An Angel With Your Strategic Marketing
When I think of ways to capture the audience with strategic marketing I often think of special events like www.forestofangels.com, which will transform The Westfield Broward Mall in Plantation, FL into a Forest of Angels from November 17 – December 24. Businesses will sponsor and decorate Christmas Trees and select a charity to represent. Patrons of the mall will vote on The Best Decorated Tree and the top vote getter will receive a $10,000 award for their charity, 2nd place will earn a $2,500 award, and 3rd place will earn a $1,250 award. You may ask How does this fit into my strategic marketing? The answer is that for $1,250 you can be part of a grass-roots project to help many deserving charities while reaching an audience that will be receptive to learning more about your product or service. You will also be able to meet other business people who can benefit from your products and services. The strategy to use is to sponsor the tree and then take pictures of your team decorating the tree and the finished project and then to use it in your promotional materials and in marketing materials to show your potential customers that this is how you give back. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Be An Angel With Your Strategic Marketing
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: 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.
