Tag: Small Business Advertising Idea

Advertisement Ideas: Why A Full Page?

Advertisement Ideas: Why A Full Page?

   As an ad executive and marketing consultant with La Bonita Kidz and Teenz Magazine, www.labonitakidz.com. I am often asked why a full-page. My answer is always because it gives you an opportunity to tell your story because facts will tell but stories sell. The second answer I give is because it allows you an opportunity to section the page  off and promote many things about your business. My third answer is because for $500 + tax you are getting maximum exposure in the market place over a 3 month period of time as we are a quarterly magazine. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Why A Full Page?

Advertisement Ideas: How To Take A Proactive Stance!!!!

Advertisement Ideas: How To Take A Proactive Stance!!!

 Looking at this list by Stephen Covey one realizes it is necessary to be proactive. The question is how do you take a proactive stance? The answer is  by being awake & aware of what is going on in your market and planning your marketing accordingly. For example  here is South Florida The Miami Heat are facing The Indiana Pacers tonight in Game 7 of The Eastern Conference Finals so doing a special promotion across your social media platforms, a text message campaign, and an email to your contacts offering specials on your products or services related to the game would garner interest.  I was at Smokey Bones on Saturday Night watching Game 6 of The Eastern Conference Finals. The Heat lost and I thought if I was The GM I would have stood by the door and would have handed everyone a FREE Appetizer Card and invited them back to watch Game 7. I then thought if they had a sound system do some contests for prizes creating a buzz and getting people saying I was at Smokey Bones in Plantation and it was awesome they had great food, great service, and I had fun do you want to watch Game 7 with me there?  The key is to look at what you can do to maximize your message, build brand awareness, customer loyalty, and create additional revenue.  Business could of posted signs yesterday wear your Heat gear and receive 10% off of your purchase. If you had a service business such as Life Coaching you could have done a promotion $7 off each session you book today. Taking a Proactive stance and planning your advertising is imperative to having success. How many of you reading this are promoting something for 4th of July?  Are you thinking about Back To School? Thanksgiving? Christmas? or Hanukkah? Chances are you are not and you are blaming others for the fact that your business may be off. It is no ones fault but your own if you are not taking a proactive stance. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: How To Take A Proactive Stance!!!!

Advertisement Ideas: The Importance Of Another Voice!!!

Advertisement Ideas: The Importance Of Another Voice!!!

 As I am determined to be of service and value to all those I come in contact with I am always amazed when someone isn’t open and receptive to ideas that can help their business to grow. Many times I find entrepreneurs that are so married to their business that they shut out outside ideas and thus do not grow as much as they could.  Sometimes the entrepreneur is set in his/her ways and thinks they know what is best for the business because they come from a position of fear and ego. The fear is often coming from the fact that they are afraid to take a financial risk or they think they are so big that they know more than the other voice.  The importance of listening to another voice is that voice may have something you didn’t think about. I recently had this happen when I made a suggestion to someone to approach the colleges in the area to find sales people for her project. her answer was I wouldn’t have thought of that. Just because someone may never have owned a business do not disqualify them as they may have been around business for a long time and helped those businesses to maximize their message.  I am often amazed by the lack of creativity shown by entrepreneurs and marketing directors and then I amazed that they wonder why business might be slow.

Advertisement Ideas: Case Studies On Why Another Voice Is Important!!!

I walked in to my local Chase Branch to speak to the branch manager about La Bonita Kidz and Teenz(www.labonitakidz.com) and I gave her an idea to do a Dollars and Cents Column to educate the readers about saving and investment programs that are available. Her answer really floored me as she said “I don’t think we have anything like that.” This floored me because I would think a financial institution would have ready to print SEC approved materials so as to build their brand in the local market not only to create brand awareness but a feeling of trust amongst existing customers and potential new customers. She took the information and forwarded it on to the marketing department. Chase should have a strategic local marketing plan as any financial institution should have because what works in Tamarac, FL may not work in Jupiter, FL as the communities are demographically different.  This is why having an outsider that is not emotionally attached to the business is important as the outside person may help to develop programs that are instrumental in retaining existing clients/customers while attracting new customers.

 I worked with Coach Shantel Springer on publicity and as a result she received media coverage thus giving her credibility and attracting new clients. She exemplified the idea of listening to another voice. Shantel walks her talk and invests in herself and as a result has been able to create a network of individuals to go to for assistance as she understands that everyone can be helpful in some way. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: The Importance Of Another Voice!!!

Advertisement Ideas: How To Effectively Use Cause Marketing

Advertisement Ideas: How To Effectively Use Cause Marketing!

 

 How many of you went out this week and bought a pint of Penn Jillette Magic Swirtle Ice-cream developed for Walgreens as part of his task as a finalist on All Star Celebrity Apprentice to benefit Opportunity Village? I did and I will probably buy another pint or 2 before Sunday’s Final Episode. As I bought the ice-cream I began to think wow what an effective cause marketing campaign. I then began to ask the question why aren’t more business people using this tactic? The answer was simple it was because they didn’t know how simple a cause marketing campaign is to run.

    While I was checking out at Walgreens the register prompt asked if I wanted to donate to The American Cancer Society. I again thought wow great cause marketing. I have witnessed cause marketing and have seen it work very effectively over the last 35 years. I remember the aisles of smiles campaign for The Muscular Dystrophy Association where if you bought certain Proctor and Gamble products they would donate to The Muscular Dystrophy Association. I have seen several programs known as give back nights done with local restaurants with great success. Cause marketing can be a very effective marketing tool if done correctly. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: How To Effectively Use Cause Marketing

Advertsiement Ideas: Lessons From Celebrity Apprentice!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Lessons From Celebrity Apprentice!!!

  On Sunday May 19, 2013 The All Star Celebrity Apprentice will be named. It has come Down to Penn Jillette and Trace Adkins. Both of them have been great competitors and represent great charities. Penn is representing The Inclusion Project and Trace is representing The American Red Cross.  Through this season I have observed many lessons. As I watched the final task, which was to design a DELISH Ice Cream Flavor for Walgreens and then present it at the party I began to think who is going to bring in the most money?  Trace used a lot of his key contacts on task one which he won teaching us to strategically plan when you can use your key contacts again. Penn has a huge contact list and is well liked teaching us that it is important to treat everyone with dignity and respect.

 Each player taught us a lesson that we can use to improve our personal and professional lives. Continue reading Advertsiement Ideas: Lessons From Celebrity Apprentice!!!

Advertisement Ideas: How To Create A Positive Presence In The Community!!!!

Advertisement Ideas: How To Create A Positive Presence In The Community!!!

 What have you done today to let people know who you are, what you do, and why they should use your products or services? Did you send out a tweet, post on Facebook, post on LinkedIn,  post a blog entry, hand out fliers, attend a networking event, make calls to those you haven’t spoken to in a while, sent emails with a special offer, or did you choose to do nothing?  If you are not reaching out to people on a regular basis you are missing out on growth opportunities.   Remember in many cases you get a few minutes to make an impression that will last for a long time.

Advertisement Ideas: The Ways To Create A Positive Presence In The Community!!!!

 The first thing to remember when creating a positive presence in the community is that customer service can make or break your company!!!!

 On Thursday (4/25/13) I was out scouting locations to host a workshop when I went into Lefty’s in Coral Springs. I stood at the bar for nearly 5 minutes and finally walked to where a group was standing in the food prep area and asked if the GM was in I told her that I had been waiting for nearly 5 minutes and by the way 3 people just seated themselves and may need a server.  Her reply was don’t tell me how to run my restaurant. At that point I said I guess I won’t be holding my workshop/meeting here and I left. An employee followed me out of the restaurant and confronted me about going to other restaurants in the plaza. I simply stated I do not want to argue with you I am doing fact-finding. A few moments later the GM came out and confronted me saying I had embarrassed her in front of one of her food suppliers. I stated that is business wishing her Namaste and walking away at which point she called me a liar. I went to my car and thought wow they weren’t that busy but they had time to be confrontational. Guess who won’t be patronizing Lefty’s. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: How To Create A Positive Presence In The Community!!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Mr./ Mrs. Business Owner It Is Time To Wake The F UP!

Mr./ Mrs. Business Owner It Is Time To Wake The F UP!!!

 

   I can not tell you how many times I wanted to yell into the phone this week “Wake The F Up”, as I encountered many business people who just don’t seem to understand that everyone calling your business is a potential customer or may know someone who can use their product or services. In one instance I called Myotis Salon and Boutique at 9:30 AM and the gentleman answered the phone I introduced my self asking if I could speak to the person that handles the marketing and community outreach and was told you selling advertising I open at 11 AM you call back then. I found this to be strange as I know from my experiences the best time to discuss advertising and marketing is when you are not open so you can devote your time and attention to the conversation and be fully engaged. Think about it had the gentleman been open to receive or polite he would not be in this blog being used as a bad example of conducting business. He could have said sir I would like to speak with you however I am involved with a another project right now please call me after 11 AM. Remember it is not what you say but how you say it. I ask you do you think I am going to recommend his services to my female colleagues who could benefit from his services. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Mr./ Mrs. Business Owner It Is Time To Wake The F UP!

Advertisement Ideas: Your Business Doesn’t Have To Be Slow!!!

Advertisement Ideas:Your Business Doesn’t Have To Be Slow!

  As I sell advertising for La Bonita Kidz and Teenz, www.labonitakidz.com, I hear over and over my business is slow I can’t advertise right now.  I always think why is your business slow? The answer is simple because you are not advertising and you are missing opportunities. I also think the reason your business is slow is you are shutting out ideas because of your programmed response of I am not interested. By not being interested in opportunities and not advertising your business remains slow.  The reality is that your business doesn’t have to be slow. You have the power to drive traffic by being creative and proactive. I have covered this in this blog on several occasions and those who have used some of the ideas have shown a spike in their business.

 Having an awareness as to what is happening in the marketplace will help you to increase your business. Ask yourself what pain do I take away? After you answer this question then you can come up with a plan of action to promote yourself effectively and create a desire for your products or services.  This month baseball season started and I began to think how can one capitalize on the fact that people are going to be following their favorite team for 162 games and how can I use this to my advantage? The answer was to promote things like Pitch Like An All Star, where I teach people how to improve their copy writing and presentation skills. Or Hit a Home Run With Your Publicity, where I teach people how to secure free publicity through effective media relations.  By incorporating the baseball theme you create something that is relevant, entertaining, and resonates with your desired target audience. Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Your Business Doesn’t Have To Be Slow!!!

Advertisement Ideas: Finding Your Why!!!

Advertising Ideas: Finding Your Why?

 

As I sat at lunch today (4/5/13) at The Progressive Black Men National Conference along with Clifford Townsend, a Mindset Coach and Speaker I had the pleasure of hearing a presentation by one of the alumni members about finding your why? As I listened to him speak about brotherhood and finding your why I thought what if a business could convey their why in advertising?

You can visit www.pbm1989.org to find out more information about Progressive Black Men and the work they are doing. You can even consider sponsoring them and having an opportunity to share your why. The key is to define your why.

 In finding your why ask yourself why am I in this business? Ask why I opened my doors this morning? Ask why you are promoting what you are promoting.  I have always stated that facts tell and stories sell. By having a why story you will resonate with people who can relate to you and thus want to do business with you.  I am often asked JDOGG why do you do what you do? My answer is because I have a desire to help other people excel and I have learned if you help enough people get what they want you will get what you want.  I also answer because I know that marketing works for people do business with those they know like and trust. By sharing your why with others they begin to know you, like you, and trust you.  Continue reading Advertisement Ideas: Finding Your Why!!!