Advertisement Ideas: What’s Your Problem?

This question came to mind to me today (4/18/12) as I was out collecting donations for The American Cancer Society Relay For Life of West Boca Raton, FL 33322. Most everyone I came in contact with was open and receptive and were polite even if they weren’t in to donate. There were a few who I started to think What Is Your Problem? I went to a wireless provider (Verizon on Yamato Rd in West Boca) and the gentleman behind the counter stated Ia m too busy to which I replied it only takes a minute to reach into your wallet and grab a $1, my goal is to see 100 people and have each of them donate a dollar. He answered I told you I am not interested. I figured out what his problem is, his attitude toward giving and being of service to others. He complained how slow things were in one breath and then that he was too busy to take time to make a donation. Think about it for a $1 donation he could have helped to build his business as he was dealing with someone who has over 1500 twitter followers, over 1700 friends on Facebook, a good linked in network, hosts an Internet Radio Show, and has many contacts in the community that could have benefitted from his service. Instead of goodwill he now gets listed in the ugly customer service category and this negative story gets told. W.hen you are representing your business be it as an owner or an employee the key is to take time to support those that come in supporting the community and leverage your goodwill through advertising and marketing. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: What’s Your Problem?

Advertisement Ideas: How To Choose The Right Advertising Vehicle

How To Choose The Right Advertising Vehicle

When I think of vehicle I think of cars, trucks, or vans. This is a vehicl wrap, which is an effective way of advertising. One of the best at wrapping your vehicle is Vinylot in Margate, FL.

As I stopped into Vinylot to see Gwen about advertising in The Coconut Creek Life magazine that I represent I started to get all these ideas about how to choose the right advertising vehicle as business have so much to choose from. A vehicle wrap can have a great impact as it is seen by all those on the road. Tee-shirts and ball caps and other promotional items work as well. The you have radio, TV, print advertising and social media. Many times it must feel like you are being bombarded and in many cases overwhelmed. The choices seem endless and they are because everyone seems to have a way to promote your business. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: How To Choose The Right Advertising Vehicle

Advertisement Ideas: Do You Give Good Or Bad Phone?

Advertisement Ideas: You Give Bad Phone

This blog was inspired by a recent call I made to Arts Alive in Coral Springs to follow up on a voice mail message that I left.I was told I don’t recall, thus I stated why I was calling to set up an appointment to see how I could be of service and value through marketing and advertising. I was told I have A PR Company I answered okay I am not looking to be your PR Company I am looking to maximize your message by showing you what I have to offer through Life Publications. His answer was we aren’t interested. I said no problem can I ask you I was told no you are being pushy and this is the type of call we don’t want. I hung up and laughed because oblivisously this man missed the day they taught phone etiquette.

Attention Business People!!!! This is the phone learn how to use it properly so as to attract business as you never know who is on the other end.

On another call a business owner from The Funky Biscuit stated I do not get involved with the advertising and you will have to email my partner. This always strikes a nerve as we do not have to do anything we have the ability to choose to do things. This was a real turn off. I stated okay I’ll email your partner. A suggestion I have for those answering the phone, be courteous and open to receive and never tell someone they have to do anything instead state tahnk you for inquiring about that we handle all those requests via email or please direct this inquiry to our marketing director at his/her email address. Also think about it you may be speaking to someone who has some influence in the community, like myself who has a blog and decides to share a negative expereince or a positive experience with those that visit. Those visitors may know some people who would have become customers so your one negative encounter can have a rippling effect thus remember the way you act on the phone can impact your business. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Do You Give Good Or Bad Phone?

ADVERTISEMENT IDEAS: Wake Up and Market Yourself!!!!

Wake Up and Market Yourself!!!

How many times are you going to blame others, make excuses, and do the same thing over and over again expecting different results? It is time to wake up and Market Your Self. Think is there anything that you do that no one else can do? What is it that makes you stand out? What is it that truly makes you a leader in your marketplace.

In The Olympics the difference between a gold, silver, bronze or no medal at all is the fact that you reach down deeper inside and find something that no one else can do. In 1976 Bruce Jenner, won the decathlon and has been using that fame and his positive attitude to market himself ever since.Bruce Jenner captivated the world when he broke the world record and won the gold medal in the decathlon at the 1976 Olympic games, earning the title, Worlds Greatest Athlete. Jenner has become a highly respected motivational speaker, sports commentator, entrepreneur, commercial spokesperson, television personality, actor, producer, author, and charity supporter. Audiences are captivated by ‘ unique Olympic, personal and professional success story.

Using the decathlon as an example think of ten things that set you apart from your competition and capitalize on them using them in all your marketing material.

Advertisement Ideas: Brand Yourself

Whatever business you have the key is to brand yourself and market yourself. When you find out what you have that no one else has you can capitalize on that and market yourself. For example I have a unique voice and come from a spiritual perspective and I also have great experience in marketing and media relations thus my tag line is The Spiritual Emcee Maximizing Your Message. What is that you are known for and what do excel in?I ask this question of my clients so as to create a tag line for them and then help them to market accordingly. I recently met with a women who was helping people to creat a better financial position for her clients and thus gave her the moniker of The Financial Fixer, another client was helping people to find happiness and create the life they were seeking and I named her business, The Happiness Way, and gave her tips on marketing and promoting.

One of the best people at branding is Donald Trump, like him or not he has built a strong brand and you see his image everywhere. You may not have the resources that he has, however you have resources that when used effectively will build your brand. To build your brand you will want:

1: Consistency- From logo design to advertising you want to convey the same message

2: Recognizablity- When someone sees your logo or your name they should be easily able to know it is you

3: Publicity- You will want the media to take notice of you so make PR a priority

4: Reaching Your Target Audience- Know who you want to reach and use resources to reach them

5: Promotion- You want to promote creatively and effectively so as to maximize your message

How Recognizable Are You?

When I say Allstate what do you think of? When I say Nike what do you think of? When I mention McDonald’s what do you think of? You may not have the budget of these big companies but you can use their models to follow. They all share one thing in common they developed a brand that most everyone recognizes. Getting recognition can be as easy as using a 3 foot rule and talking to people that are within 3 feet of you. You can also look into print publications that are synergistic to your goals and objectives and offer them content thus creating a following. You can create a blog and publicize it with information. You can utilize social media to gain recognition.

Think of ways you can stand out and build your brand. I often look at the set up of a business and ask what they are doing to drive business. I have this uncanny ability to look at a retail establishment or a home based business and come up with plans that will attract new business. For example I was at a Pizza place that had two TV’s and the owner was telling me how slow things were. I asked him have you thought about capitalizing on events like March Madness? He asked me what that was? I explained it is what the NCAA Basketball Tournament is referred to as. I explained that many offices have office pools where people pick their teams and if that team wins they win a prize. I suggest that he put a sign in the window Watch March Madness Here. I also suggest that he run a pool where patrons would fill out a bracket give him their name and email address and the winner gets a meal for 2. By be creative and using the resources he has The TV’s he could increase traffic to his restaurant.

I chose this calendar so as to plant a seed for you to consider what can you do in your business to create a buzz and attract client/customers. take August 1 Sports Day and offer a special to anyone that wears their favorite team shirt, ball cap, or jersey. You can get shirts made up like a jersey with your company name and if someone spends a specific dollar amount or higher they receive the shirt as a token of your appreciation. You could also do a chance drawing for sports memorabilia with the proceeds being donated to a charity. The more creative you are the more recognizable you will be. You could do in-business and external promotion. Think about an ad that Says Come Celebrate Sports Day at XYZ and spend $50 or more and receive one of our collectible jerseys. We will also have a chance drawing for (Insert Charity Here). Show your team pride and receive a 10% discount. Place this ad in your local publications, around the store, place it on your social media sites, your web site, record a commercial and play it on your voice mail.

This week think of ways you can wake up and market yourself.

Advertisement Ideas: No More Excuses

Advertisement Ideas: Stop Making Excuses and Do Something

Magic Johnson didn’t make excuses when in 1992 he was diagnosed with HIV, his performance in the NBA All Star Game that year was amazing. I chose Magic as my lead example because he could have said poor me, however he used the resources he had and stayed on a regiment to keep him healthy. When the economy wasn’t so good and most people were pulling money out of the community Magic was expanding his commitment to the community.

The Magic Theatres created jobs during the build out and continues to provide jobs in the community all because Majic Johnson didn’t make excuses. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: No More Excuses

Advertisement Ideas: Building Isn’t Enough!

Advertisement Ideas: Building Isn’t Enough

Kevin Costner hears and acts upon the voice,”Build and They Will Come,”

We all remember the scene in Field of Dreams where the voice says build it and they will come, well people did come, then again it was a movie. Due to the large promotion of the movie many people trek to the movie site in Iowa. The Convention and Visitors Bureau for the area lists in in the attraction section. They have a marketing director and a special events coordinator to keep the traffic coming. What are you doing to create your Field of Dreams? Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Building Isn’t Enough!

Advertisement Ideas: Is Your Plan On Par With NIKE

This is probably the most recognizable logo of all companies in the market place today? What are you doing to brand yourself?

Advertising Ideas: Is Your Plan On Par With Nike

I am often asked, How do I create a plan that will get me the results that NIKE gets though I don’t have a Nike type budget? The answer is to lok at what NIKE did in the beginning. Nike was first introduced to the world by Steve Prefontaine, whose coach specially designed running shoes for him while Steve was running for The University of Oregon. The shoes were seen and people began to inquire about them and the coach found a manufacturer. The name Nike was adopted as it comes from Greek meaning goddess of Victory. The SWOOSH logo is a graphic design created by Caroline Davidson in 1971. It represents the wing of the Greek Goddess NIKE. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Is Your Plan On Par With NIKE

Advertisement Ideas:10 Lessons Learned From The Superbowl

Advertisement Ideas:10 Lessons Learned From Superbowl

As I watched what I consider to be one of the most exciting Superbowl in recent history, I began to think what lessons did I learn?

1: The economy isn’t that bad when companies are spending $3.5 Million on a 30 second ad. Using the economy as an excuse as to not advertise just limits your chances to attract business.

2: Many people watching this game don’t have a clue about the game. I must have explained why the Brady toss from the end zone was considered grounding and thus resulted in a safety. Lack of knowledge can hurt you not only when watching The Superbowl but when it comes to advertising your business. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas:10 Lessons Learned From The Superbowl

Advertisement Ideas: Return Calls Are They a Thing of The Past

Telephones: A Key Tool to Success

In the last year and a half I have discovered that fewer and fewer people are doing business via the phone they are communicating via email, social media, and other outlets. The phone today is being used as a way to communicate through text rather than conversation. When was the last time you picked up the phone just to say hello to a client/customer and see how they are or what is new in their life. The use of the telephone is a key tool for success. Think about it when your phone rings how do you answer it or if it goes to voice mail what message are you portraying. I called someone the other day and received their voice mail it was hello this is leave a message. My suggestion is if you are using you phone for business then the message should be this is ____________ of ________________ with a little plug about your business so as to leave a great impression with the person calling, especially if that person ois reaching you for the first time. The telephone can become an awesome advertising vehicle as you can change your message on a regular basis and include your promotion/specials. You can have a short testimonial from a client/customer in your message. Another important fact is if you have on hold messages make sure you have information about your company that build credibility such as years in business, people you have worked with, and trends in your industry.

Advertisement Ideas: Return Calls Lead to Success

I have often said that when someone takes the time out to stop by your business and leave a business card or when someone calls your business and leaves a message return contact them as you never know who they may know or how they can help you. I often experience the lack of returned calls and wonder are they a thing of the past. For example I stopped by a school to introduce myself and offer my services as an announcer I left my business card and waited for a call back. After 2 weeks I called the school to be told they weren’t interested in my services and that they weren’t planning to have an announcer at their sporting events. As I hung up the phone I thought wow not a return call, no announcer for sporting events, and they wonder why their enrollment is down and their donations are down. The person who received my card probably didn’t think it was worthwhile to call me and thus lost out on an opportunity to enhance their sporting events and increase their fan base and donors. How many times have you not returned a call or reached out to someone for you didn’t think it was worthwhile? Think of all the times someone came into your business that could have been of service to your business and if you would have taken a moment to call them where it may have led. The person inquiring about working with you may be someone who is connected to others that can benefit from your product or services. For example when someone returns my call and meets with me for 15 minutes they have an ally to help maximize their message as I have a database of 170 media email addresses. Think about the person at the school that didn’t return my call and the benefit they could have had. I may have been someone looking to donate to a local school but since they didn’t call back they will never know.

Retun phone calls and contacting people who leave their business card at your place of business can lead to increbible success as you never know who someone is or what they can do for you until you connect with them. It is when youa re open to receive that you take your business to the next level. Several years ago NASCAR lost the Winston Cup Sponsorship and went looking for another sponsor. A new sales rep at NASCAR decided to reach out to SPRINT and left a message with The Marketing Director. The Marketing Director returned the call and within a few days signed on to be The Title Sponsor on NASCAR. Imagine if the marketing person at SPRINT didn’t return the call how they would have lost out on this opportunity. It may not be NASCAR calling you but it may be a well connected individual in the marketplace or someone known for networking or marketing and media relations calling and by not returning a call you may be missing out on an opportunity to build your brand and increase your revenue.

Advertising Ideas: The Art of Making Connections

When I leave a message on a voice mail it is my goal to get a call back so as to make the connection and be or service and value to the person on the other end. There is a true art to making a connection.

1: Know who you are calling- Do your homework, peel back the onion

2: Give them a reason to call you back- leave a nugget that will entice them to return the call

3: Be short and informative- The more concise you can be the better

4: Ask yourself would I return this call?

We all want to have our calls returned and we would expect that peoplewant to make connections.I was speaking to a leader of a charity and she said I return every call personally because I never know who is on the other end. she told the following to me one day I recived a call from a potential client who was seeking our services and I called to set up an appointment, it turned out he had a cousin who produced commecial videos, which led to me making a contact with the cousin and explaining that we had just helped his cousin and was wondering how much it would cost to do a video he said I’ll do it for free. We now have our video on endless loop and as a result have received more donations and been able to help more people.

The point is the next time you are left a card, a vocie message, or sent an email make the connection as you never know where it may lead.

Advertisement Ideas: How To Pay It Forward

When I do consultations with businesses I am often asked how can I pay it forward. I usually answer find a charitable cause that you are passionate about and research programs that you can participate in and then create a marketing strategy that will promote how you are paying it forward. One of the charitable causes I am involved with is The American Cancer Society Relay for Life in which I participate annually, this year my website that you can visit to make donations is http://main.acsevents.org/goto/jdogg1. I mention this as I use my involvement in this cause to garner free publicity for my business. Last year I wrote an article JDOGG Barks to Assist Cancer Patients, this article appeared in several local newspapers, and on many radio station web sites as a result of paying it forward I was able to garner a few emcee bookings. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: How To Pay It Forward