Advertisement Ideas: Stop Being A Grinch!!!

This article was inspired by some of the interactions I had this week while I was out collecting donations for The American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Sunrise, FL. I was out promoting the donation page, http://main.acsevents.org/goto/jdogg3, and taking donations on the spot. As I approached businesses to donate many were very open and receptive and I collected $65 bring my total to $442 toward a goal of raising $100, however there were several businesses that I felt were being very Grinch like in the way they treated me. This had me thinking how many clients/customers are they losing because of their Grinch like attitude. I actually told one business owner from Robert’s Barber Shop that he was being a Grinch as he said what is it people don’t want to work which really struck a nerve with me as I was collecting to give the gift of hope and healing to cancer patients and their families. I tried to explain this but he wasn’t comprehending and kept trying to disparage my credibility. I did everything to reassure the man that the money he donated is not for me but for those touched by cancer and will be used for research, education, advocacy, and services. I left thinking wow what a Grinch. I understand that business people are hit up all the time for donations and there are many scams out there and you must be skeptical, however you must also realize that there are many legitimate people like myself out there collecting and that we may be soliciting today we could be a customer tomorrow and we just might recommend you to our contacts if you are not a Grinch.

I came across another Grinch at The Boost Mobile Store in The Welleby Plaza in Sunrise. Again I went in to ask for a donation and the gentleman was very upset and stated how I had the nerve to interrupt him while he was trying to do business. I apologized for interrupting his business and I did my best to explain that I was doing a good deed and that I could help hos business. He wanted no part of me and told me to leave his F-ing store. I stood by the door for a while just to egg him on and see how far he would go. he threatened to call the cops and I said go ahead. He then came at me and when it seemed he was going to get physical I left. I know I pushed it a bit far, however I have learned that if you believe strongly in what you are doing it will resonate with many people and you will find success. I have come to learn that there are many Grinch’s out there and the best we can do when encounter them is to simply ask them not to be a Grinch. Maybe they will realize that their Grinch like attitude is the cause of their lack of success and they will change. I have come to realize that all I can do is make them aware and then let it go. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Stop Being A Grinch!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Banging For Business!!!

This is an open door that leads to opportunity. I have learned over the years that if you bang on enough doors and you say persistent in your pursuit you will develop customers/clients and thus you will continue to have success in all you do. When was the last time you went out into the community and sought people to share your product or services with so as to generate leads and keep an active pipeline going? One of the best things I have done in working with non-profit entities as well as with for profit businesses has been to include going door to door as part of the strategic marketing plan. In going business to business to solicit donations for The American Cancer Society Relay For Life over the last 16 years I have raised over $35,000. I have also been able to secure more teams for Relays in the communities where I live, work, and play. As a representative of several companies I have found going business to business with brochures to be very effective as it helps to build name recognition and gives you a distinct advantage when you follow-up. If you are not banging for business you need to incorporate this practice into your 2016 plans.

When you bang for business it is important to utilize your phone and to make calls to set up appointments with people so that you can have the opportunity to show them how you can be of service and value to them. You phone can be a great tool to bang for business as you can post photos to social media from it, make videos and share them across all social media platforms, text message potential customers/clients with special offers, set up an application to interact with existing clients/customers and potential clients/customers. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Banging For Business!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Drawing Attention!!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Drawing Attention!!!

I have witnessed so many businesses using a cookie cutter formula and trying to copy others in the industry and struggling when they could be thriving by standing out and drawing attention to themselves. I have always professed that being a bit different is the best way to draw attention to yourself and strengthen your brand. I have also noticed that some will get what you are doing while others will be quick to judge. My theory is simply be your authentic self and draw attention and those meant to do business with you will show up and support you. It is when you stop trying to attract everyone that you succeed. I have always made it point to stand out be it wearing an elf hat at Starbucks while writing blog entries or wearing my purple BEAT CANCER Sneaker or simply taking over a microphone at an event to showcase my skills as an emcee I have always made it a point to stand out. I remember the day I decided that I was going to wear a suit and my Snoopy slippers to do a speech simply to see the audience’s reaction. I delivered the speech and many commented on how great my content was but most made a comment about The Snoopy slippers. Some of the comments were not the nicest but many were positive. The interesting thing was when I followed up with everyone even those that had negative comments about the Snoopy slippers I made it a point to remind them that I was the presenter who wore the Snoopy Slippers and you know what my reply rate was over 85% and as a result I was able to secure some voice over work, emcee work, and picked up a few marketing and media relations clients. The idea is to be a bit different and make a memorable impression and remember you will not resonate with everyone but those meant to use your services will.

Advertisement Ideas: Drawing Attention With A Platform!!!

I host an Internet TV Show, The Anything Bucket, which airs on www.wrpbitv.com on Tuesday at 6:30 PM EST and this platform has proven to be a great platform for those who choose to come in and do an interview and purchase the clip of their appearance. I tell my guests that have a clip of your appearance on The Anything Bucket will help to draw attention to your business and give you the edification and credibility that every business is seeking. Purchasing the clip is an investment in your effort to build your brand and thus stand out from others in your industry. In using a platform such as Internet TV you are drawing attention to your business and when you invest in buying the clip and leverage it properly you will gain business. I had a guest on who owns Gump Pest Control whose motto is save your rump with Gump. We did about 10 minutes and he purchased his clip and posted it across social media. He wrote me an email thanking me and stating that he picked up some customers as a result. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Drawing Attention!!!!

Advertisement Ideas: The Full Monty!!!

Today’s post was inspired by The Show, The Full Monty, where the cast is definitely maximum exposed. As I reflected on the idea of maximum exposure I realized just how many business people are under exposed with their marketing and media relations and how many do not even have a strategic marketing plan. It is important to put yourself out there and remember that you are your brand and how important it is to figuratively give people The Full Monty. It is imperative that you continuously are out in the community promoting yourself and the products or services you offer and how you are different from others doing what you do. It is also a priority to show people how you are of service and value and why they should be doing business with you. Many people go into business and they do not have a written plan about their marketing and media relations and then wonder why they are not being as successful as the envisioned. If you are going to exceed in business you need to have a plan and work your plan.

Advertisement Ideas: The Full Monty Formula!!!

Know who you want to do business with and know where they get their information and what other businesses they frequent. In knowing where your audience is it will make it easier for you to build your following.

Set up a budget to print and distribute collateral material. Have a budget to do on-line marketing. Have a budget to do video marketing. Remember that marketing is not an expense it is an investment.

There are may things that happen in your business that are newsworthy so having a strategy to get the information out to the news outlets that your target audience is watching, reading, and listening to will play a major role in strengthening your brand and increasing your revenue. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: The Full Monty!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Kicking Ass, Taking Names, And Following Up!!!

So you attended an event with the intent of meeting people who would be interested in your product or service, you collected business cards, but you put those business cards aside and waited a few weeks to contact those people. As a result you may not have much success is turning those leads into customers. The idea is to go into all events you attend with the mindset that I am going to kick ass, take names, and follow-up. Today (10/17/2015) I was at an event, The Taste of Tamarac and I was on a mission to promote The South Florida Gold, a professional basketball team that plays in The American Basketball Association. I had an encounter with their executive director as I was exchanging information with the vendors and the vendors were very receptive, but he did not see it that way saying it was inappropriate. I told him it was appropriate and that is what doing business was about and he could go pound sand. He walked away and I went about my business. I kicked ass as I used my talents for good. For those of you who do not know I have an amazing voice for promotions, voice overs and emceeing, and pa announcing and I love to make small promotional videos to help businesses to maximize their message. I haven’t had a business complain yet and those that have posted my promos have done well. I took many business cards and I will follow-up on Monday when I am in the office. The key is that you must follow-up with in 48-72 hours of speaking with some one so that you can strike while the iron is hot. While I was at The Taste of Tamarac I met the people from The American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Tamarac. Again for frequent readers of this blog you know my passion for Relay For Life. I took one of the canisters and simply turned to a lady and asked if she had a $1 to help create a world with less cancer and more birthdays and she gave me a $1. I then said to The Tamarac Relay representatives you see it is just that easy. At the end of the day they had collected $120, not bad for a 3 hour event. I share this to encourage you to have a kick ass mind-set. If you are serious about being successful you must be tenacious and understand some will, some, won’t, so what, some waiting, next. Along the way you are sure to have a few people upset with your tactics hello that is the cost of doing business as not everyone will resonate with your message but many will resonate with your message and want to do business with you. The key is to continually kick ass, take names, and follow-up. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Kicking Ass, Taking Names, And Following Up!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Get With The Program!!!

When I was kid I would here this phrase quite often as many of the activities that I was involved in were very structured. As I got older and started to venture into the world of marketing, advertising, media relations, and public relations I began to realize that many business people did not understand the importance of these areas and as a result struggled and eventually closed their doors because they did not get with the program. Today as I present opportunities to businesses and non-profit I hear many programmed responses like I don’t have a budget or I am not interested. There have been many times that I wanted to reach through the phone grab the person on the other end and simply yell GET WITH THE PROGRAM!!! I have encountered many people in positions of authority who simply do not get it and then wonder why their sales are down. Such was the case yesterday as I called the sales manager at Lou Bachrodt Chevrolet in Coconut Creek who I had been leaving messages for about The South Florida Gold, a professional basketball team that plays in The American Basketball Association. When I left messages I explained the relationship I had with the dealership and he didn’t return the call. He picked up the phone yesterday and after I introduced myself his answer was I am not interested. I replied sorry to hear that I can really be of service and value to you and I have been a customer of Lou Bachrodt for many years. He then said I don’t have a budget as I allocated all my advertising dollars. I replied I just want to meet with you to see how we can be of service and value to one another. His reply was I told you I don’t have a budget.I said okay I’ll call someone else. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Get With The Program!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Spread ‘Em Wide!!!

When you read the headline of this entry what was your first thought? Many probably went right to the image of the police officer getting ready to put the cuffs on someone and pat them down. Most conjured up this image as we have been programmed to react in a certain way through media manipulation and the repetition of many so-called norms of our society. When I think of the headline spread ’em wide I think about marketing a frequent and consistent message so that when someone thinks of me they know who I am and what I do and feel comfortable about doing business with me. just as this phrase spread ’em wide conjures up a certain image or picture ask yourself what image or picture does my brand conjure up when people see it or hear it.

Well established brands like McDonald’s and Allstate share one common thread and that is a frequent and consistent presence in the marketplace. A few years back Allstate partnered with The NCAA to sponsor the goal post nets that are put up for field goals and extra points and as a result has increased their brand awareness while also donating to scholarship funds thus creating a picture that they area company that cares about the community. McDonald’s has sponsored many sporting events including The Olympics.

Now you may not have the budget of a McDonald’s or Allstate but you should have a budget to spread your message wide. How many times have you been approached with an opportunity to spread your message and you have found all the reason why not to take advantage of the opportunity and the you see your competition did. As a result clients/consumers may be going to the competition. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Spread ‘Em Wide!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Stop The Madness!!!

While American Citizens worried about this flag our government managed to fast track The Trans Pacific Partnership, which makes The North America Free Trade Agreement look tame. While Walmart banned the selling of this flag they didn’t stop importing goods from China. This is ironic for if you are going to stand against slavery and hatred but not stop using what is considered slave labor used to make the goods you are importing from China you are part of the problem and contributing to the madness. Now municipalities are taking down statues, renaming schools, and digging up graves in an attempt to rewrite history. So many of our American Citizens have become sheep and are being driven by the controversy of the day instead of looking at the real issues and understanding you can take down as many flags and statues but until you stop the madness brought on by the hate that is in some people’s hearts the real issues will not be resolved. It is time to stop the madness and stop majoring in the minor.

Another ironic twist is that while amazon and other e-commerce sites were busy banning The Confederate Battle Flag they were still selling Nazi Flags and Isis Flags. Heck a Walmart employee refused to make a Confederate Flag Decorated Cake but gladly made an ISIS Flag Cake, a great example of just how uneducated our workers in America truly are.

Now the question is how do we STOP THE MADNESS. The answer is simple educate the working population and train them so that they can be an asset to your business. The idea is to bring back a manufacturing and agricultural base to America and to eliminate the greed factor that is hurting our country. We must also eliminate the entitlement mentality and get back to the concept of hard work and being of service and value. If you have a talent you must find a way to utilize it and monetize it and to take action to build your personal brand so it attracts the people who you want to do business with so that you can thrive. How about you do a campaign that say we serve all people with our products and services. Instead of using the concept of I am (an insert nationality here) – American just start to say I am an American with a business designed to help my clients/customers who can benefit from my products and services. Then make it a point not to judge people when they come to your business. I have learned that we may not be able to attract everyone to our business but those that resonate with our message will choose to do business with us.

The best way to solve these issue sis to adopt Don Miguel Ruiz’s Four Agreements and do your best to adhere to them. The Four Agreements are….

If you can convey this is your advertising you will begin to create more brand awareness and recognition while also creating a buzz about your business and thus helping to stop the madness. The key is to create customer loyalty by being of service and value by enhancing the customer experience by looking at solutions for the real issues and making sure you become a problem solver.

The issues mentioned above affect us all because there will be current customers and potential customers that will not agree with the principles we stand for and may get offended so we must do our best to target customers who will resonate with our message. The nest way to stop the madness is to remember some will, some won’t, so what, some waiting, next. The greatest thing we can hope for is that our business will help to unify a community instead of divide the community. If we are truly going to stop the madness we must tackle the real issues and walk in our truth and thus have a message that is relevant and resonates with our desired target audience. It is time for you to become a problem solver and ask how are my opinions on these issues affecting my business.

By now you have heard of the couple who refused to bake a same sex wedding cake and how they have been sued and ordered to pay damages. My take is that this story only led to more madness. It is their right to refuse business from anyone and I am sure the couple ordering the cake could have found another bakery. This is another example of the media choosing to create madness and division. Personally of it were my company I would have made the cake taken great care of the couple as money on my pocket is better that in someone else’s pocket. The cake company owners stated it was against their moral values and that it went against the teachings of Jesus. Hello, wasn’t it Jesus who was teaching us to be kind to all people and not to sit in judgement. It is your right to refuse a customer and it is my right as a customer to go elsewhere. Again it is time to stop the madness.

Sometimes it is not about being right or wrong it is about doing the right thing so stop the madness.

Advertisement Ideas: Back To The Basics!!!

When I was a kid we has a supermarket in our area called Basics. It was place where you brought your own bags or boxes and most of the products were generic. The store did massive advertising and flooded the area with coupons. They were doing a good business but then the landlord decided to raise the rent and it got to be a bit pricey and cut into the profit margin and the store closed. The store sat empty for many years and now there is a Lowes Home Improvement store on that site. As I reflected on the concept of Basics Supermarket I began to think how many times we in business get away from the basics and then wonder why we aren’t having successes. How many times to we come up with an advertisement idea but we don’t implement it because we do not know if it will work and then we make many excuses as to why not to implement it. The key is to remember that if you do not advertise your business you will eventually lose so it is time to get back to basics.

The first basic principle is to get out there and hit the bricks. This sounds like an old school principle but it works. Last week as I was promoting my TV Show, The Anything Bucket, which airs on Tuesday at 6:30 PM EDT on www.wrpbitv.com I decided to walk a shopping plaza and share who I was and that I was seeking guests for my TV Show. I walked into Wise Little Shoppers in Sunrise,FL and the owner Sparkle was receptive to the idea of being on my show. She called me the next day and booked a time to come into the studio to tape a segment for the show. She came taped a segment and bought her clip to use in her marketing. In hitting the bricks you will meet people who can benefit from your products or services. I have been one to go business to business to share who I am and what I am doing and it has proven to be effective. Whatever I find myself promoting be it my TV Show, my charitable work with The American Cancer Society Relay For Life, or the South Florida Gold, a professional basketball team that I represent I find the best way is to get out in the community and go face to face, eyeball to eyeball, flesh to flesh to get the best results. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Back To The Basics!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Lack Or Abundance – What Mindset Are You?

As I was out collecting donations for The American Cancer Society Relay For Life Of West Boca Raton today (6/24/2015) I ran into many people who were coming from a lack mindset. You may ask how I knew this, the answer was in the word’s they used like I can’t afford, business is slow, or how do I know this is legit. These words only hinder us in our personal and professional life as we hold ourselves back.One encounter at The Imperial Cuts Barber Shop really made me realize that as business people we must stop using the lack words and start tapping into our ability to create abundance. In the course of my presentation the owner stated business is slow on 4 occasions to which I sated if you keep thinking things are slow it will remain slow and I did my best to explain that there is plenty of business to be had if he would get out of the shop and start to meet people and share his business. His answer was he didn’t have time. I though okay you just told me things were slow, you were given a few solutions and you made an excuse that you did not have time. It was at that time that I realized that he was coming from a lack mentality. I also have started to put people into two categories action takers and excuse makers. The action taker comes from an abundance mentality and takes action thus making things happen for their business. On the other side is the excuse maker who will come from a position of lack and find every reason not to seek opportunities. I ask you to take a look at how you are expressing yourself and evaluate if you are coming from a lack mindset or an abundance mindset. Look at the opportunities that exist and take full advantage of them by shifting from a lack mentality to an abundance mindset. Instead of being an excuse maker start to become and action taker. Instead of saying I can’t afford start finding ways to invest in yourself and your business. Imagine if Imperial Cuts would have said thank you for coming in and here is $5 for your cause. They would have gotten shout outs on my Facebook Page, on my Twitter Account, and recommendations to my friends in the area who needed a hair cut. Instead they get used as an example of a business that is coming from a position of lack.

If you are to truly succeed in your business you will want to come from a position of abundance in all you do. Everything you do in business should give the perception of success from the way you answer the phone to what you put out on social media. Instead of complaining you can take action and improve the way things are going. Ask people what they think when they see you brand or hear your business name or your name. In coming from a position of abundance as opposed to lack you will see a loyalty from your existing customers and they will be more likely to recommend you to others. If you create an atmosphere where your business is perceived as thriving people will want to do business with you. I am reminded of the story of two steak places in my community one would donate gift cards to every charitable organization that asked while the other said no. One steak house would pay $15 per hour while the other paid $8, one would allow the manager to make marketing and advertising decisions while the other did not. Guess who is still in business and who is not? Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Lack Or Abundance – What Mindset Are You?