Sunday, October 21 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | 5 Comments
Developing a marketing plan can be a part of business planning and development, but it’s easy to confuse it with the formal business plan or startup strategy.
A marketing plan can help you identify the key objectives and goals of increasing sales, and it’s not as intimidating as it seems. A one-page marketing plan is a great way to get started in organizing your next initiative, and all it takes is seven critical elements. Simply plugging in a few sentences or ideas for each question can help you develop a blueprint for your strategy, and these can always be built upon as the project moves forward:
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What’s the purpose?
Identifying the goal of the marketing venture helps you filter out unnecessary information. Do you want to increase sales during a specific period? Attract new customers? Increase market share by converting your competition’s customers? The purpose statement is a miniature ‘mission’ statement that can help you create a cohesive and focused plan.
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Why do you need to do this?
This will help you determine the benefits of the marketing initiative, and can be a simple bulleted list of reasons why this will help you achieve the items outline in #1.
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Who is the target market?
Demographic data and statistics will help you create a more powerful message that resonates with your customers.
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Are you a niche leader?
Making your niche business successful requires understanding what exactly you do that’s different from anything else out there. How do you plan to make your brand stand out?
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What marketing medium will be most effective?
There are dozens of marketing tools available, but that doesn’t mean you need to use all of them! Consider 2-3 marketing tools for each initiative. A few choices include blogs, websites, podcasts, flyers, brochures, newsletters, billboards, radio, and/or print advertising.
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What’s the budget?
Answer this question with some flexibility; you may need to get rates from each of the mediums selected in #5 and then establish a baseline budget. Once you’ve selected the rates and calculated costs, consider ways to cut back if needed.
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Is it consistent with your brand?
Your brand and company name must be in line with the activities and initiatives you pursue, and this will help you build a steady group of customers much more easily. Brand identification is important for businesses of any size, and you can reach your target market much faster and more easily with a strong brand image.
What are some other ways to put together your marketing plan?
How long does it really take?
Thursday, October 18 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | Leave a Comment
Company newsletters have long been used to share information about current events, upcoming highlights, and latest news. With today’s blogging and website capabilities, many companies have simply turned to web-based versions of newsletters, allowing both customers and employees to access critical information and the latest news. E-mail newsletters offer many benefits beyond a printed form, and can reach out to both your current customer base and potential subscribers through the website. E-mail newsletters allow you to:
- Make you an expert.
By allowing readers to learn about the latest trends in the industry, your customers can enjoy keeping up to date with research, news, and reports. You can write up a brief summary or report about a particular news item for delivery each week or month and it’s a great way to position your company as a market leader or industry expert — even a guru.
- Teach how to do something new.
How-to articles are well received, and can provide unique content amongst reports, statistics, facts, and figures. Any topic related to your industry can help make your e-mail newsletter that much more readable.
- Promote your brand.
The more consistently you deliver your newsletter, the easier it will be to promote your brand and raise brand awareness. Your logo, colors, and theme can be incorporated into almost all e-mail newsletter templates and encourages the mind-connection with your customers.
- Spend less money on marketing.
No matter what your marketing budget may be, e-mail newsletters are a simple and low-cost way to create an immediate impact. Many e-mail newsletter programs are also equipped with tracking services that let you see how many newsletters were opened and which links were clicked.
- Build web traffic.
Direct links to articles, blog posts, or just your website can be included in each e-mail newsletter and make it easy for readers to simply click to your site.
Share new content. E-mail newsletters link back to articles and content on your site make it much easier to share. Adding a simple ‘forward this newsletter to a friend’ button provides you with an opportunity to increase readership at every single point of distribution.
Wednesday, October 17 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | Leave a Comment
Whether your advertising and marketing efforts are primarily online or take place in tangible form offline, developing powerful ad copy is critical to long-term success. Brand building, highlighting a new product, or simply delivering an important message are all possible with clever ad placement and a well-strategized marketing plan. But how do you make sure your advertising stands apart from the competition? Here are just five traits of powerful ad copy for your business, company, or website:
- The Emotional Capture.
Emotions are the trigger for capturing the audience’s attention and bringing a call to action. Building up emotion in your message and really making the receiver will help your message stick.
- Dramatic Leads.
Powerful words, enticing ideas, and drama are critical to your advertising message. If you’re in a highly-competitive market, it’s even more important to be bold about your statements. Bold and simple statements work best, and those that can be memorized easily are much more effective for word-of-mouth marketing and creating ‘buzz.’ This is one reason why guerrilla marketing is so effective.
- Steps to the Sale.
This is a highly used tactic by salespeople, but works just as well in any advertising medium by ‘showing the way.’ Show people what to do next, whether it’s to pick up the phone, visit the website, or go to the store. This call to action concept has been used in sales and marketing for decades, and is an important part of effective ad copy.
- Getting the Facts Straight.
Providing clear and cohesive statistics about your statements is a great way to capture the audience’s attention. A solid statistic, fact, or figure can build credibility for your message—even if it’s not your own statistic. Think about how powerful the diet industry can be with this tactic; simply talking about a recent study by the FDA, medical professional, or published reports about a particular ingredient gives them leverage to continue on with their own ‘findings.’ Ad copy that includes statistics or other facts can help build up enough resistance and deliver the message clearly
- Positive word choices.
Using positive words throughout the headline and introduction is a simple way to keep the audience interested and continue reading. Ad copy that is short and concise still contains enough positive words and connotations to create a positive emotional connection with the brand.
What are some other techniques you notice in the media around you? What ad copy techniques work?
Sunday, October 7 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | 1 Comment
Newsletters, brochures, websites, and even blogs are mediums of communication that reach out to your target market. Without effective ad copy, your market may be oblivious to your message, and it’s one reason why many campaigns simply fail. Knowing who your prospects are is just the first step in reaching out to your new customers, but learning about how to stir their desire and motivation to find you appealing is the necessary element to marketing success. Whether it’s in sales collateral, a newsletter, or a blog post, marketing with emotion needs to be part of your plan.
The first step in choosing your message involves identifying what they really want. Is it status? Vanity? Relief from fear? Increased security? Understanding the basic desires of your customers may require a brainstorming session or two, but the more you can fine-tune your message to appeal to the basic human emotions, the easier it will be to capture their attention. Fear and greed are the most common emotion-stirrers, and are also the themes we see time and time again in mass marketing today. Take a look around and see for yourself which ads stick out from the crowd—in almost all cases, they are presenting a message that is designed to appeal to our most basic desires.
You can use this tactic in your own marketing and advertising campaigns. Design your sales or ad campaign with any of the following as the fundamental theme, and you can easily power up your ideas with a few carefully chosen words:
- Satisfy a curiosity
- Reduce discomfort
- Help them avoid embarrassment
- Provide hope or optimism
- Help them achieve security
- Encourage self-reliance
- Help them become popular
- Lead them to take advantage of a new opportunity
These are just a few of the most common themes in today’s most powerful marketing campaigns. Which ones tend to stick with you in your daily life? How can you sue the same tactics in your own campaign?
Saturday, October 6 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | Leave a Comment
Even with today’s emphasis on website advertising, blogging, and other internet-based marketing efforts to reach your target market, there’s still plenty of opportunity in traditional forms. Print media and radio advertising can still deliver a powerful message as part of your marketing campaign, and understanding how to use radio advertising to your advantage can help you launch your business in a fresh direction. Here are just a few benefits of radio advertising:
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You’ll become a local celebrity. If you can schedule an interview with a radio talk show host or other expert in your field, you’ll gain instant traction with your local market.
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You can arrange for a rotating broadcast. Radio advertising packages allow you to choose different time slots for each message or campaign, and you can easily target your most interested audience at just the right time.
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You can partner up with a public service announcement. PSAs are a great way to get your company name out, especially if you’re just starting out. Just contact the radio station and ask how to get involved.
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You can be a featured guest. A guest speaker on the radio helps you reach out to a new audience, and you’ll have a chance to encourage listeners to visit your website immediately.
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You can run a high-frequency program efficiently and easily.
Every type of marketing effort needs to reach your customers at least 20-25 times before it becomes ‘natural’ for them to choose you. Radio advertising is a great way to use the power of repetition with your advertising ideas.
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You can run a short-term promotion campaign. Announcing incentives or discounts on the air can help you attract a large pool of customers quickly. Listeners might dial in or log on to your website immediately after hearing about a special offer.
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You can get people talking! Radio advertising that uses a clever theme, song, or just a fresh idea is a great way to generate some word-of-mouth marketing.
What types of marketing mediums serve you best? Is radio one of them?
Thursday, October 4 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | 2 Comments
Blogging is a natural extension of many business websites, and is quickly becoming a valuable way to attract and retain visitors to your site. Using a blog as an extension of your website—and even a marketing tool—can help you generate some new interest in your company and products, but there are a few essential elements to consider before you start posting. Here are just eight essential elements for your business blog:
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Stick to a schedule. Lining up a schedule of postings will make sure your blog is updated regularly and consistently, giving readers a chance to ‘count’ on your information. When visitors see that you are a reliable source of information, they are much more likely to come back—or subscribe to your site.
- Make sure your posts are optimized. Search engine optimization isn’t just for website articles, and you’ll need the search engine recognition as often as possible. Make sure to use proper formatting procedures, tags, and appropriate keywords throughout your post.
- Post at least 3-5 times per week. This is just enough to keep your readers interested and improve search engine recognition over time.
- Make sure you have an RSS option. This will help create a steady list of subscribers and readers, and also make it easy for your site to reach social bookmarking sites with ease.
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Run that spellchecker! Spell checking and editing your blog is just as important as writing content for a website. Keep your readers interested by providing quality copy.
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Become a resource point for your industry. Allow visitors to turn to you as a rich resource of information, not just another ‘echo’ on the web.
- Provide fresh news on a regular basis. Even if you’re not a news-based site, develop at least a couple of posts per week that pertain to the state of your industry with summaries, links, or even video clips.
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Keep your message clear and concise. Clear and concise writing is essential for your blog. This is different from article writing and print media, so make sure you can develop short and clear posts as often as possible.
What are some other blogging tips and strategies that work? Share them here!
Wednesday, October 3 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | 1 Comment
Creating a valuable first impression isn’t the only way to build and establish rapport with your clients.
Knowing how to build rapport with each and every prospect is a simple way to put your relationships into high gear and bring benefits to all parties involved. Even for the introverted types, rapport is a skill that can be learned; while some people have a natural ability to communicate and create a positive relationship with other people, others may need to practice and strategize a simple game plan to make it work! Here are some tips on building rapport:
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Make solid eye contact.
Eye contact is essential when you want to make a favorable impression, and showing sincere interest will require your full attention. Avoiding eye contact is a sign of insecurity and even deception, so it’s essential that you provide clear signals of interest throughout your interaction.
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Match your body posture to your prospect’s.
This is a subconscious habit that is very powerful when you understand how to do it. Imitating your prospect’s stance or overall posture can help them relax and feel more comfortable. Watch how a confident salesperson pulls this off next time you catch them talking with a client; take note of their body movements and gestures to see how well they parallel the person they’re talking to. Chances are, they are matching their body posture more often than not.
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Talk slowly.
The fast-talking salesman can easily talk himself out of a potential sale. While today’s fast-talking society may seem confident, slow and steady usually wins between people. Learning to speak in a casual, confident, and conversational style will help you connect with your prospect much more easily. Talking fast can put pressure on the conversation and turn off the prospect too soon.
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Learn to be a listener.
And a repeater. If you can fine-tune your listening skills to really understand what your prospect needs and wants, it will be much easier for you to offer a service, product, or suggestion that can meet that need. Repeating what your prospect is saying can further clarify what exactly it is they want, and you can lead the conversation with your offer with much more success.
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Ask questions.
Don’t be afraid to learn something as you speak with your prospect and clients; inquiring about something you don’t understand or are interested in learning more about is a great way to ‘break the ice’ in the conversation and allow the prospect to explain something to you.
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Use humor.
This goes along with #3 and your conversational style. Anyone is more likely to listen to a friend or someone who seems ‘real.’ Leave the excessive smooth talking for the TV commercial or video plugs; when you’re speaking to others in person, it’s essential to allow a natural, relaxed, and friendly personality shine through! A (respectful) joke or funny story are great ways to start a relationship on the right track.
What are some surefire tips and strategies that work for you?
Sunday, September 30 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | Leave a Comment
With today’s tech-savvy consumer jumping online to find local vendors and listings, the need to advertise in the ‘conventional’ YellowPages is steadily sliding. Even YellowPages.com is a limited directory compared to the options available on Google and Yahoo!, and it’s easier than ever for businesses to get online and start advertising for little or no cost.
However, another website offers a fresh opportunity for local business; MerchantCircle.com allows anyone to create a listing, get referrals and testimonials from customers and clients ‘live’ on the site, and even partner up with an existing Google Adwords or Yahoo! advertising campaign. While the advent of Google local allows businesses to put themselves on the map, there are still limits on how much a first-time visitor can learn.
MerchantCircle.com allows businesses to leverage the business website and supplement it with a blog, online coupons, and even a newsletter.
The merchant pages offer innovative features and an attractive interface. Each page contains:
- A basic information section
- Google map
- Blog
- Coupons
- Newsletter for prospective customers
- Photo gallery
- Reviews section for a ‘rolling list’ of feedback
- Bulletin board for other listings and news
Best of all, it’s free.
MerchantCircle.com is the next step for local advertising and a simple way to help increase exposure in your target market.
A business can even type in their business phone number on the main page and find out what other people are saying or writing about the business on the web. So far, over 215,000 businesses have signed up, and the entire process takes minutes to setup. Listings are sorted by state, city, and zipcode and the main page also posts the latest businesses who join the network, providing additional exposure when the listing is created.
Finding a way to reach your local target market, at no cost whatsoever, is simple with the options available on the site. Upgraded packages are also available if you’re interested in something more robust and comprehensive. Take a look around and see if MerchantCircle.com can help your business.
Have you tried it yet? Share your results, thoughts, or comments below:
Wednesday, September 19 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | 4 Comments
By now you’ve probably heard about the Law of Attraction, the idea that what you focus on the most will bring the most significant results. The Law of Attraction in business has been addressed by authors such as Rebecca Hanson, and marketing coaches such as Jen Blackert in her article, Law of Attraction: 8 Manifesting Must-Haves for Entrepreneurs.
Knowing how to apply these principles correctly could yield some interesting results; here are a few simple ways to apply the Law of Attraction to get the right clients:
You might ‘call’ your clients in innovative ways. Instead of reaching out to your customers and clients in traditional forms—e-mail, voice messages, or even IM—think of ways you can make an appearance in their daily life instead. This is the basis of branding, but can be used in creative ways. Try a hand-delivered thank you note for a recent lunch, or a unique gift after a presentation that you both attended. Making sure the client has you on ‘top of mind’ can help generate further business with very little effort.
It’s also advantageous to be genuine with your marketing efforts. Much of marketing yourself may seem like ‘schmoozing,’ but being genuine in your relationships and partnerships will help things flow with ease. When you both have a goal or intention in mind, the process is much simpler and much more natural.
You can also try predicting the response you want. If you have a ‘gut feeling’ that your client, or prospective clients, may be interested in something you can provide, find a way to highlight the value for them and send it their way. Sometimes simply spelling out how something can help them is all it takes to capture their interest.
Finally, look for ways to move towards a richer relationship. Attracting clients doesn’t always lead to a direct sale—maybe you can reach out to them for referrals, building your portfolio of other work, or simply as a resource. Knowing how to nurture and maintain relationships involves a positive, growth-oriented mindset and your intention can help guide you towards long-term clients with much less resistance.
What are some other ways to attract clients? What strategy works best for you?
Saturday, September 15 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | 3 Comments
As you toil away at the details of your marketing plan—reviewing advertising options, timelines for ad campaigns, and strategic online marketing opportunities—it can be challenging to put it all together into a cohesive plan. A marketing plan can really help guide you through the budgeting and strategic-thinking process. Instead of throwing all sorts of ideas on the table, a plan can help you navigate through each step with much more flexibility. Does your marketing plan include these five components?
- Marketing mission statement. This is different from the mission statement on your business plan, focusing on exactly where your market segment is, and where your products or services fit here. An example marketing mission statement might be, ‘our lifestyle products are designed for 18-24 year old college students to improve learning rates.’ This will help you narrow down exactly what you’re bringing to market, for whom, and most importantly, why.
- Situation analysis. This can be drawn out using a SWOT analysis method. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats; addressing all of these areas makes it much easier to see where you stand amongst the competition, and which new territory you could potentially call your own. The situation analysis can also include a market forecast or segmentation.
- Expense budget requirements. The marketing budget is often overlooked during the startup phase, but it’s an important factor to consider as you start launching campaigns and programs. You may need to pull together potential proposals for a realistic idea of what your marketing projects will cost. Setting a budget will help you filter out items that can wait for a later time, and just help you prioritize your marketing plan so it works as you grow.
- Sales forecasting. Put together a spread sheet that outlines what you expect each month, and plot an ‘actual’ column as you move ahead. Knowing how closely your forecast matches actual results is a critical part of growth, and can help you change and shift your strategy as needed.
- Risk and contingency report. This can quickly become complicated without the right approach, but it’s well worth the effort to put something down in writing. A risk and contingency report helps you highlight your minimum and maximum investments (based on your budget) for each marketing strategy; it can help you calculate your return on investment, and identify which ones are the most risky.
Thursday, September 13 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | 1 Comment
If you’re already on Squidoo, you’ve probably started building your lens and attracting like-minded readers, potential customers, and new fans. Squidoo has quickly become a growing blog and website community, allowing users to build a lens on a very focused topic that’s searchable with a simple keyword search. Now we have SquidWho, another opportunity to get involved with the vast world of the blogosphere. Plus, getting yourself onto the list offers many benefits.
The goal of SquidWho is to create a series of ‘fan pages’ on anyone and everyone. Just type in a famous celebrity name, and you’ll see a listing of where you can find information on that person is immediately available in a blog-style format. SquidWho pulls information from eBay, YouTube, Flickr, Amazon.com, and existing lenses on Squidoo. It’s a simple way to glance over anybody’s profile, ‘wikipedia-style.’
So how can this help you?
The user-created community allows anyone to create a fan page—even your own. If you’re looking for a fresh outlet to spotlight your blog, website, or just yourself, this is a great place to start. SquidWho can be helpful for any entrepreneur or business owner for the following reasons:
- It can increase search engine rankings
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It can help drive more people to your site, making you more discoverable on Squidoo and related blogs
- Any news about you will instantly be sent to this main page for easy discovery
- You can personalize the page to include logos, images, or anything else you might want to share with your potential audience
- You can discover your target market through browsing and exploring the site itself
If you’re looking for a fresh outlet to spotlight your blog, website, or just yourself, this is a great place to start. Type in your own name first, and see if someone has already started a fan page for you. If not, you have the right to ‘claim’ the page and get it going. SquidWho asks you to fill in and edit these key areas on the main page:
- Three reasons to love (you)
- (You) at a Glance—a wikipedia article
- Great (you) stuff from Amazon
- Quick, what do you think of (your name)—this is a poll that can be edited later
- The Latest Yahoo News on (you)
- (Your name) videos
- Shout out For (You)—this includes stories, bog posts, rants, raves, etc.
- (You) on Flickr
Test out SquidWho and tickle your curiosity. . . then tell us where you are on the SquidWho map!
Thursday, September 6 by Sabah Karimi in Marketing | 1 Comment
Even if your business is a one-person show, chances are you can maximize your gains by leveraging your relationships.
The business without any employees is still involved with networking, making relationships, and communicating with dozens of people. Whether you’re working with vendors or potential investors, learning how to schmooze can lead to fresh opportunities and even a higher chance of success. Building relationships is a mindset that can offer many entrepreneurs a chance to create a solid network of resources. Here are some tips on learning how to schmooze like a pro:
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Focus on the goal of your connection.
Knowing what the purpose of your prospective relationship is before you make an approach will keep you on track for the positive. Understanding how both of you can benefit from the potential partnership makes it much easier to break the ice, and foster a relationship built on respect for each other’s needs. Putting yourself out there first by offering something of value to the other party puts you in a great position to learn how they might reciprocate; and it’s the basis for plenty of negotiations as you move ahead.
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Ask lots of questions.
Schmoozing requires listening and feedback, but you need to be in the position of ‘very interested learner’ as often as possible. Asking questions lets the other person share and talk with ease, and will keep the conversation moving along much more naturally. Avoid dead-end questions that are likely to result in one word answers. You may need to practice this a little, but learning how to get other people to chat away is an easy step to schmoozing success.
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Be a reader.
Get into the habit of reading, studying, and even researching your prospect before hand. If you don’t have anything in common, it’s much harder to carry on a conversation that will lead to results. Find out what your base knowledge needs to be, and think of two to three current topics on the subject that you can discuss with ease.
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Carry your business card at all times.
The opportunity for schmoozing can strike at any moment, and having your contact information readily available makes it much easier for prospects to get in touch. Just a simple contact card will do; when it’s easy for others to get in touch with you, you’ll instantly become more approachable.
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Extend a favor.
Offer to do something for the other person, and make it clear that there are no expectations for reciprocation. You’ll need to be genuine with this strategy, and make sure you have some credibility with the other person or your maneuver could backfire if it seems insincere. Extending a favor can help you become, well, favorable.
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Follow up.
Sending an e-mail, a brief note, or even a ‘Thank You’ card if the event necessitates one, are great ways to make a statement that you’re serious. Following up after the 24-48 hour mark makes it clear that you’re in business, and appreciate your initial meeting. Leaving a lasting impression can help you build your credibility, especially when the prospect has you ‘on top of mind.’
Tuesday, August 21 by David Askaripour in Marketing | 2 Comments
In July a dozen or so 7-Eleven shops were transformed into Kwik-E-Marts to generate buzz for the new Simpsons Movie. Each store, literally, was changed around to look just like the store on the hit television series.
This sort of marketing is definitely thinking outside of the box — the sort that really gets people engaged. People, when shopping at their typical 7-Eleven store actually feel a part of the movie, a part of the Simpsons show.
Providing that sort of internal value for customers is priceless. It’s not only good for 7-Eleven sales, but, of course, for ticket sales.
From Nytimes.com
A spokesman for Fox Broadcasting, Gregg Brilliant, said the promotion had surpassed expectations: “Anytime you make something that appeals directly to a fan base, in a limited quantity, for a limited amount of time, naturally you are going to have a collectible value.”
Since the mock Kwik-E-Marts would only be around for a limited time, the value of the experience was increased exponentially. In marketing, this is sometimes referred to “scarcity marketing.”
From 101publicrelations.com:
This tactic Scarcity Marketing is used to tell people that:
- They can only have a certain number of an item
- There’s only a limited supply available
- Something’s only available at that price for a limited time
Try and think on this sort of marketing level with your own business. What scheme can you pull off — maybe with just your business or by collaborating with other businesses in a coordinated effort — to spark a ton of buzz about your product or service? And, if possible, to use scarcity tactics to increase the value of the marketing campaign.
Who knows, maybe it’ll be a stunt, practicable joke, or an outright way to “punk” your clients one day. Something to produce some sort of unordinary and out-of-the-blue emotions from your clients.
Some ideas may include:
- Offering a new product or service that you are capable of providing but never did since it was out of your niche. Just offer it for a month (and make it cheap)
- Totally redesigning your site with a funky CSS style sheet that you can turn on for a day or two
- Going to the park with 1000 balloons with your URL printed on them and handing them out to people
- Create a video of you and all of your employees making a mock music video of your favorite band and playing the video on your homepage
- Offering a 25% discount on all of your services for an entire month
- Creating a fun contest to stir up buzz about a new project… but instead of giving the prize to the winner, give it to everyone that participated!
As Apu, owner of Kwik-E-Mart, would say: “Thanks you, come again.” But come back to Mind Petals — or maybe we should design Mind Petals as an online Kwik-E-Mindpetals.
Tuesday, July 17 by Gina Laverde in Marketing | 6 Comments
A few years ago, a friend of mine started a hip-hop dance troupe in Chicago. She had ideas of using dance to make money and have a huge impact on the city. It was her goal for the company to become a regular name in bars, clubs, festivals and parties – but she was also offering classes and mentoring programs for aspiring dancers. Basically, she loves to dance and doesn’t want to settle for starving her way through a dance lifestyle. She realized that although she may not be able to dance forever (because of the strain it puts on the body); she would always enjoy running the business.
And, so she began – but without any money. But, you better believe that any friend of mine has got to be pretty resourceful. With a little (or a lot) of help she concluded that she would pretty much never need to pay for marketing – if she did it properly in the beginning.
So, she got a publicist who had a fairly huge contact sheet. She had someone write an awesome press release that told a story and begged readers to ask more – and she sent it out to over five hundred people. As a result, her company was covered in numerous publications including the Chicago Tribune. The media coverage brought the public out to their shows and events, and made them a hit from the beginning. Now, their work is covered because people want to be updated on the troupe’s latest adventures, not because they write new press releases.
If a press release is written like a news story, and the story is good – it will be hard for editors not to publish it. If you or your copywriter can conjure an angle that will lure the reader, then your press release may be published in its entirety. Good press releases may also be used in part, or simply inspire the editor (or receiver of the p.r.) to call you and ask you more questions about your business.
You may not have a business that holds events or news that you feel is fitting for your city newspaper. But, do not sell yourself short. Yes, you need to find your audience – and they are out there. And, I guarantee that they read. You can send your p.r. to trade publications, bloggers, any media and creative directors. You can send the release to whoever will help get the word out to your audience.
You cannot afford to pass up this inexpensive marketing technique. When I launched my magazine, I sent out about 1000 p.r.’s, and I got 10,000 hits in the first two days. I am now experimenting with tailoring press releases for specific groups, to make them more enticing. Spend your money on having the release professionally written, or at least copy edited. Make sure that you quote business owners and experts and draw the reader in from the beginning. Look for someone who has an extensive list (publicists do not like to share their lists, and they don’t come cheap, either). But, you can also begin compiling your own lists.
If you use a press release properly, it can turn out to be the springboard for tons of free marketing for your biz. And, we like free, don’t we?
Saturday, June 30 by David Askaripour in Marketing | 2 Comments
This article was originally published on our forum provided by Matt, founder of Matt Cardy Specialist
I’m a skeptic. I don’t mind admitting it. I also fall for great marketing and more importantly look at the trends of a great marketeer. I say skeptic because with all the will in the world, I can’t take the written word as the truth all the time. Authors tend to elaborate and in the case of a work of fiction, that’s a good thing, but in ‘Success Manuals’ I’m sorry but I can’t help thinking that some people do elaborate on their success and the ‘models’ that go with them. I prefer a visual account, that way I can see it for myself and seeing is believing.
Recently, I’ve been watching a show on TLC called “The Real Deal” but it’s changed name to “The Real Estate Pros”.
If you haven’t seen the show, it’s a reality show centered around Trademark Properties, a South Carolina Real Estate company headed by Richard C. Davis. It’s a fly on the wall documentary which tracks projects and ‘house flipping’ undertaken by Richard and his Team.
Love him or hate him, Richard Davis is an inspirational entrepreneur. He is offered a house to purchase and he makes a snap decision whether he will or won’t take it. When he does take it, he goes in and out like a whirlwind, renovates the house totally and prepares it for immediate sale.
Where any other property developer will go in, look around, employ an architect and prepare the work for three or four months ahead and plans meticulously, Richard and his team but the house, have a look at it and start work immediately. Where it would take 3-4 or more months to complete the job by most other people, these guys do it within the week.
Of course, Richard has made the money to do this and do it quickly. He’s built his reputation with suppliers and his team on the philosophy ‘Just do it’. The job gets done on time because of his determination and experience. Why?
He knows his market.
This is one of the most fundamental parts of a business and certainly lends itself to the success of Richard from Trademark Properties. He is a man that knows who his market is, he knows what his customers want, he knows what they will pay for and he knows what price he can ask for a property that has his stamp of quality.
His customers know him too. The people that buy his properties know that he has an eye for detail, doesn’t cut corners and does what he does professionally and without compromise. Many of the properties he renovates in just 7 days, he sells immediately. Why? Because he knows his market and he knows his team has done a quality job.
Apply this to your business. Your reputation is the key to your ultimate success. It can make you or break you — just like that. Get yourself a name for quality products, outstanding service, fast turnaround and excellent customer service.
The number 1 most important factor in business is NOT a mission statement, it isn’t your product, it isn’t you. It’s your customers, your market. Everything else go hand in hand. You have to make sure you have the product or service in place and make sure it’s 110% before even handing it over to the customer. No cutting corners, just get it done to the best of your ability and present your product or service without compromise.
Your customers should be customers for life and that’s what will keep you in business for years to come, not a mission statement or throwing tons of money at advertising.
The best form of marketing is YOU. You know what your business is about, you know your product intimately, you know your service better than anyone else and you know what you are capable of. Therefore, you need to go out and talk to people and give them the confidence in you and your business to make them a customer.
While you do this, wear your company/logo/website/service name. You buy clothes? Why not embroider your company name or website into your shirt/coat/hat? It’s inexpensive and how many people have looked at you and you’ve thought to yourself ‘Why is this person staring at me?’ Give them something to stare at!
Carry business cards or flyers wherever you go. You never know who you are going to meet. One of the most asked questions when you meet someone for the first time is ‘What do you do?’ Get your answer down to a tee. Three sentences maximum and make sure you use buzz words - Quality, Service (Excellent Level Of..), Focused, etc.
I know, it’s human nature to tell people how well you are doing, or even embellishing the truth a little by over-exaggerating and making people like you a little more because you are successful… don’t! Just give them the facts. Know your selling points and know your business. Tell them in three sentences what your company does.
If someone asks me what I do, I don’t just say.. ‘I sell cars and build websites.’ That tells them nothing! I say - ‘I am an Internet vehicle import/exporter supplying quality, rare and in demand vehicles to my clients Worldwide. I’m also a website designer exclusively for clients in specialist sectors where high customer service levels and quality are paramount, as if that wasn’t enough, I also aid people in business start ups, by offering advice and technical assistance at very low cost.’
It sounds like a mouthful and a lot of information to give, but people ask open questions to get a good answer and converse. People get you to talk about yourself. Normally when I speak to someone they tell me all about their car and where they got it, down to the service they got when they bought it and had it maintained etc. Others tell me the car they are looking for. That’s my way in. Most of my business comes from word of mouth and through talking to people.
I mentioned earlier about carrying business cards. People automatically think that if they give out business cards and flyers that someone is going to call them and pay an exorbitant amount for their product or service. Wrong! When was the last time you were given a business card and called the number on it to buy something?
People give out business cards to make contacts to sell products to. The chances are the only people that have called you from a business card is someone trying to sell to you? Yes? Well, here’s the deal. Your best marketing implements that you should never be without will cost you less than $5.
A pad and a pen. When I talk to people, they ask me what I do and I get a lead from them that they are looking for a car, what’s the first thing I do? I reach for my pad and pen to take their name, number, the details of the car they want, whether they need financing, have a part exchange, what color they want, what extras and what vehicle they drive at present, when they are ready to buy and I find out their budget. How do I know all this? I turn the conversation on them and ask open questions making them tell me everything I need to know to sell them the car they want. I shut up and listen.
Why? Because if I hand them a business card, they are not going to call me. If I take their name and number I can call them and my chances of success raise from a 50% chance of calling to 100% certainty I’m going to do my best to secure an order.
My $5 pen and paper have been so much more productive than my $100 business cards and have made an extremely significant return on my initial $5 investment. I’m still down $100 on my business cards!
Business is not rocket science. You need to tell your market that you exist. Going back to Richard Davis and Trademark Properties, the most recent episode he was opening his new retail unit in Charleston S.C. in which he paid just over $2 million for. He renovated it and made the store look impressive. This store is going to be his launching pad for his new vision - Franchising his company. He and his team spent the day at a fair literally walking and talking to people and telling them the shop was there. It’s simple things that work. Newspaper adverts rely on people seeing them. If you tell them, they are going to hear.
You may think the fact he has a TV show has spring boarded his career and that’s why he’s got success. On the contrary. This man is brilliant. He’s even selling branded merchandise in his Real Estate store. It’s not Versace or Gucci, it just has his logo on it. People buy clothing with his logo on it and inadvertently advertise his company.
Tell me that’s not the mark of a visionary and brilliant marketeer?
Thursday, June 28 by David Ponte in Marketing | 4 Comments
Hello my fellow Mindpetalers!
Being a sales person in the online media industry, it is always a challenge meeting new people and finding new opportunities. I have come across a website that may help many of you in your journey to establish and grow your businesses and startups.
My boss, who like many of you, founded a startup 7 years ago called Operative. It was through his vision that this company was started and now can claim such clients as MSN, NBCU, and most recently MySpace (Fox Interactive Media). He is not exceptionally intelligent (I hope he doesn’t read this!), albeit extremely savvy and communicative, but was able to follow-through on his idea to create a brand new market segment by having a vision on what the future of the Internet would be. He surrounded himself with the right people and was able to sell his vision to them. He took a risk, which every entrepreneur has to do at some point if they want to be successful.
One thing that is essential in an entrepreneur’s journey to turn an idea into a reality is to know the right people. One always needs access to the resources that can enable them to be victorious in their efforts. Mind Petals founder, David Askaripour, envisioned this and that led him to create this site. I am recommending another site that I came across recently.
It is called Adbree.com. It is essentially a MySpace for people in the online advertising industry. A social networking site devoted to people who see the Internet as a business opportunity. Whether you are an online publisher looking for people to advertise on your site, an advertiser, or media buyer looking to find publishers who reach the users that your clients want to reach, or somewhere in between like myself… it is an excellent way to get more exposure for whatever you do. It is also an excellent way to learn about some cool new businesses and startups.
The only thing I ask is that after you take the time to sign up, that you send me a friend request right away!
David Ponte works in NYC for
Operative.com and can be reached at dponte@operative.com
Tuesday, May 1 by Brian Armstrong in Marketing | 2 Comments
If you’re a small business owner, chances are that your marketing budget lies somewhere between slim and none. But fear not, because today a number of totally free advertising methods exist that can be surprisingly effective. Here are the top five that I have personally used, and they are absolutely free…
As a small business owner, it’s easy to get caught up in the daily activities that leave you wondering “What did I get done today?” But the most successful business owners that I know spend 80% of their time on one task: bringing in new customers.
Their time is too valuable to spend tinkering with the website, calling suppliers, and interviewing employees. Yours should be too. If you aren’t bringing in new business, then nothing else matters.
Of course, if you’re like most small business owners, then you’re on a tight budget, and traditional advertising methods might not be an option. Don’t despair! Today a number of totally free advertising methods exist that can be surprisingly effective.
Here are the top five ways I’ve seen small business owners dramatically increase their sales without spending a dime, and I’ve used every single one of them myself.
#1 - Post Regularly on Craigslist.com
Craigslist, in it’s simplest form, is a free online classified website. It started out in Silicon Valley (California) and has slowly spread to the rest of the world, becoming one of the top ten most popular websites on the internet. Every day, thousands of people in your city are using this website to find real estate, computers, romance, and jobs. Chances are, they are also looking for whatever you sell.
Find an appropriate category on their site and make a free post. Create a catchy headline, include a photo if applicable, and list the main benefits of your service. Highlight a free trial, special deal, or free resource that is available on your website, and provide a link.
The most recent posts appear at the top, so you’ll want to come back every 2-3 days to repost your listing (you’ll have to take your old one down first, they don’t like duplicates). Craigslist has a strange mix of users (and you may get a few oddballs), but it is also used by a very educated, wealthy, and cutting edge demographic. Several small businesses I know have stayed alive in the early years on nothing but this one website.
#2 - Start A MeetUp.com Group
MeetUp.com is a website that helps people with similar interests come together. What do your customers share a passion for? What would they like to learn? Who do they want to meet?
Help them get what they want and it will ultimately come back to you. If there is a MeetUp group already in place for what you have in mind, join and attend their meetings. Meet as many people as you can, try to contribute with your expertise, and see if the group organizer will let you come in as a guest speaker. Don’t focus on selling your product. Just focus on helping the members of the group as much as you possibly can, and you will pick up new clients indirectly.
If a MeetUp group doesn’t yet exist for what you have in mind, this is even better. Start it yourself! You will automatically be viewed as an authority on the subject for running the group, and it will put you in touch with all the right people.
#3 - Post A Video To YouTube
If you haven’t heard of YouTube, you may want to crawl out from under the proverbial “rock” you’ve been living under! YouTube is the largest video sharing website on the internet and boasts a staggering 13 million visitors per month. You can capitalize on all this traffic by creating your own video and uploading it for free.
“But I don’t know how to create a video!” I hear you saying. No problem, it might just be easier than you think. Many digital cameras today have a video function that will create electronic movies compatible with YouTube. I’d also recommend using a “screen capture” program such as Camtasia for any software or how-to related products. Camtasia will record the screen of your computer and is one of the simplest ways to create a video. You can even record a powerpoint presentation on your computer and record your voice as narration. Finally, if you can’t afford a digital camera, and you don’t want to record a computer screen, a webcam can be purchased today for under $20 that will create great YouTube videos.
The video certainly doesn’t have to be professional. Even a 30 second clip of you doing ANYTHING will probably get several hundred views in a month. Of course the potential is much greater if you can be a bit more creative. Offer value to the visitor by teaching them something quickly or showing them a glimpse of your work, and include a link to your website at the end. It may be simple and boring to you, but I assure you that someone out there would like to learn it. Just get something quick up on the site, no matter how simple, and improve as you go.
#4 - Reach Out To Your Personal Network
Before you skip over this one, you should know that some of the most successful small business owners I personally know use this as their sole marketing method. They literally have built their business from nothing by simply meeting people and letting them know how they can help.
No matter what you’re doing now, you’re probably only scratching the surface of your “network’s” potential. When you launch a new business, one of the simplest and most effective marketing techniques is to email your entire contact list. Keep it short and informal, letting them know about your new business and how excited you are. Offer a special deal to your first five customers to great some interest, and don’t forget a very important step: asking them (at the bottom of the email) to forward the message to anyone they know who might be interested. This can have an exponential effect because not only will the email reach your network, but it will reach you network’s network too!
Furthermore, you quite simply must be attending at least one networking function every week. These are invaluable ways to meet prospects in person, which is the best way to make them like and trust you. Again, offer value to everyone you meet instead of trying to sell them right away. Get people’s business cards (don’t just give them out and assume they’ll contact you) and follow up with them about what they want (not what you want). The most powerful question you can ask them is “Who would be a good customer for your business?” Chances are you know someone who they’d like to meet, and once you’ve helped them out they’ll be happy to reciprocate.
#5 - Write An Article And Give It Away
Articles could be the most effective form of advertising ever created. Imagine for a moment that you’re reading a magazine and on the left page is an add featuring a shiny new car with an attractive young couple. On the right is an article written by an automotive engineer who rigorously tested three different vehicles and recommended one as being most reliable. Which page will you spend more time looking at? Which car are you more likely to buy?
People don’t trust advertising because the company who created the add is biased. Authors, on the other hand, are assumed to be independent and credible just by getting published, so we inherently trust them more. Writing an article instantly makes you an authority in the eyes of the reader.
You don’t have to be Shakespeare to write a good article. The easiest (and most effective) articles to write are the “top 5″ format (you’re reading one right now) or a “how to” article that shows the steps to complete some task. Take a subject that your potential customers may be interested in and spend an hour or two writing your article (if you really despise writing, you can also pay someone to write it for you at eLance.com or guru.com). Don’t forget to put a byline or resource box at the bottom of the article with your name, a way for people to reach you, and a simple offer to entice them. When you’re done, do a Google search and find a dozen websites, blogs, and forums related to your business. Write the owner of the website a personal email and tell them their readers might enjoy the attached article. They can use it for free as long as your byline is included at the bottom.
By putting some simple techniques such as these into practice, you will see a dramatic increase in your business over a period of just a few months. Spend 80% of your time bringing in new business, and you might just find yourself in charge of a million dollar company!
Brian Armstrong makes it easy to learn the secrets of today’s top business owners. To get a free trial-subscription to his online course “Successful Entrepreneurship”, visit this site now:
Start Breaking Free
Tuesday, April 17 by David Askaripour in Marketing | 2 Comments
Ever suggest a new product or service to someone and try and convince them to give it a shot? Sure you have, we all do that. But, did you ever try and share a product with someone and they automatically said something like: “no way! I use fill in the blank and I would never use that!”
Well, that person was probably a fanboy. A fanboy is someone who loyally uses your service and protects it at all costs. If someone tries to convince them to switch to another service, a fanboy will immediately disregard their suggestion and continue using his own brand.
Fanboys are the people who not only protect your brand, but also push it. They won’t just tell a few people about your service, they’ll tell the world. It’s almost like an obsession for them and anyone who tries to take away that obsession in regarded as the enemy. They’ll never let go of your brand.
Many of us are familiar with the term “connectors” — people who connect other people with your product or service. Some marketing books will refer to these people as “mega hubs” — a person ( mega hub) who makes it his job to connect to other people (hubs) and share your business with them.
Though a fanboy embodies the characteristics from both connectors and mega hubs, they take things a step further — they “protect and guard” your brand. These people will not only throw a brick in your face when you try and get them to switch to another product, they’ll do everything in their power to convince “you” to switch to their brand — to become a part of their club.
The fanboy is the guardian of your brand and will forever fight to preserve it. It would be safe to say that Apple, Inc has an army of fanboys protecting their brand. Mac users are very loyal and consider themselves a “family.” They love their Macs, love their iPods, and love everything about Apple. In fact, these Apple fanboys will be among the people who first purchase the iPhone as soon as it drops.
And guess what… they don’t give a $hit about how much it costs — price won’t be a factor for them. They’ll continue to support the brand no matter what, barriers don’t exist for them.
We’re all fanboys in some capacity or another. Think about… did you ever begin to use a brand and absolutely fall in love with it? Did you purchase their products no matter what price they were because you trusted the brand? Did you hold firm when someone tried to convince you to switch? If so, you’re a fanboy.
Now that you are familiar with a fanboy, how do you build your brand so that it’ll, in effect, build an army of fanboys for you — to protect, guard, and aggressively promote your product?
Think about your brand and how it affects the live of your customers. Think about how your brand can leave an everlasting positive impression in the minds of your loyal customers. Find out what makes your customers happy from using your service. When you do — when you have locked in on that information — do everything in your power to sustain that positioning. Never stop adding value to your brand, even when you “think” that your brand is successful. Making a brand successful never ends, it’s something done every single day that you run your company.
Monday, April 9 by David Askaripour in Marketing | 4 Comments
Pictured above, serial entrepreneur John Florey, confidently pours his newly released “Kalashnikov Vodka” into the shot glasses of two very beautiful — ahh.. hot! — models.
Florey has stepped off the beaten path of Vodka brands and took a huge risk by modeling his entire brand off of deadliest killing machine ever made: the AK-47 assault rifle.
From the start of his venture, Florey has faced an onslaught of attacks towards his marketing tact to build an alcoholic beverage around an assault rifle. And not just any gun.
The AK-47 is a popular gun widely used among terrorist groups and violent activists around the globe. There are currently over 100 million of these weapons in circulation.
So it’s no wonder why such criticism towards the drink would arise. But Foley, like many other ambitious and hungry entrepreneurs, sees opportunity where others see risk.
When Foley came up with the idea to start this new line of Vodka, he immediately sought out the inventor of the AK-47, Russian General Mikhail T Kalashnikov for his expert advise on the gun and to get into the mind of the person behind such a remarkably designed and time-enduring piece of machinery.
To appease his critics Foley made it clear that:
“We are not promoting a militaristic brand, our product is a genuine Russian vodka”
But, of course, Foley undoubtedly used the popularity of the gun and all the connotations that follow it, to push his brand out of the box and separate it from the other vodka brands that have flooded the market over the years.
Upon close examination of the above bottle in the picture, you can clearly see the bottle was built to resemble the shape of a bullet. And there was no holding back with the strength of this vodka, packing a military strength of 41 ABV (alcohol by volume) to bring it over the top of the traditional 40 proof that most vodkas adhere to — just another shrewd way to give his vodka that extra “ummff!”
I admire Foley for the risk that he took. He built a brand of vodka that — essentially — glorifies violence and death. But com’on, let’s be real, we love watching death, violence, and action. Who doesn’t like Sopranos? Who doesn’t like watching action packed movies with people getting blown up as the heroes prevail?
We live in a society — whether good or bad — where we get pleasure out of violence and action, as long as we aren’t participating in it and it’s something that we are watching on television (in a fictional setting).
So the question is: why not? Why not create a vodka brand that nicely fits into the culture of “what’s cool” and “what’s hip”? Florey created a “manly” brand that will attract all those “tough guys” or people that want to feel tough and drink the official military-grade vodka. Ingenious, if you ask me.
It takes a lot of guts to go down such a road. Guts that we should all be taking with our brands. Don’t position your brand to safely fall into the nice, snuggly, and soft hands of the status quo. Create a brand that’s going to rub people a certain way, defy the norms, and create new — possibly radical — positions in the minds of your customers.
It appears as though Foley’s bets are paying off as the brand attracted a healthy slew of investors and recently went public on the JDJL Market. The stock offering was so successful that the stock became totally oversubscribed and Foley “had to actually give money back.”
Watch out Absolute and Smirnoff, the troops are coming!
Florey has high hopes for his Kalashnikov brand. His boldness and confidence may catapult his brand beyond the pack. If he has it his way, soon people will be saying “ I went out last night and got Kalashed,” says Florey.
Thursday, March 29 by David Askaripour in Marketing | 5 Comments
Don’t you just love the feeling of reading a birthday card, or better, ripping open a nice present from a friend? I love when people remember my birthday and make sure to call me or send me a message wishing me a great day.
Would you believe that that something as little as remembering someone’s birthday can go a long way when it comes to growing your business and extending your network?
Ever since reading The Anatomy of Buzz
a few years ago and now reading The Tipping Point I am reminded how important it is to remember the names of everyone you meet and also taking note of their birthdays if they happen to mention it.
For the past few years I have been carrying around a small green notebook with me wherever I go and taking down the names of people I meet at various events, gatherings, and social meetings.
I’ve also, most recently, started a new method of taking notes of each person on their businesses cards that I receive. I have a few business card books to store all my contacts along with the date I met them, where I met them, their interests, and their birthdays when I find that out.
I’m still so surprised why so many companies neglect to send out birthday cards or even birthday emails to their customers. Companies know when we were born from the registration forms we use to signup to their services. Anyone have any ideas as to why many companies don’t make such gestures?
We young and hungry entrepreneurs should try and be aware of all of our clients’ birthdays and reach out to them with a card once a year. And not just your customers, everyone you meet.
We all have 100x more acquaintances than friends, so imagine what would happen when you started sending those acquaintances birthday cards… you’d form stronger bonds with the people in your network. And who knows, some of those acquaintances could be diamonds in the rough who can help your business, introduce you to other people, and become solid resources for anything you wish to accomplish.
Wednesday, March 21 by David Askaripour in Marketing | 5 Comments
Last night I was invited to sit in on a conference called covering real estate, flipping homes, and investing in properties. I was surprised to learn that the speaker, a super successful real estate investor, found most of her clients by looking up the names of lawyers in the yellow book and sending them fancy — wedding invitation style — letters introducing who she was and the type of homes she was looking to buy.
She stressed the point of purchasing fancy stationary for the following reasons:
- It gets past the gatekeepers who screen all mail
- It’s more memorable and leaves a good impression with people
- It shows that you are a person of quality and prestige
Every 90 days this real estate investor sends a few hundred of these fancy letters with top-notch envelopes to lawyers who would be interested liquidating homes for their clients — such as divorce and real estate lawyers.
Her advice got me thinking and I believe that there is merit in using snail mail as an effective means of marketing and communication with your friends, clients, and prospects.
I know… I know… we’re all so caught up in this web era and most of us cringe at the thought of circumventing the all-might email. But looking back, every time I send a hand written letter to someone, I always get a different response than I’d get with an email.
People seem to appreciate hand written letters more than emails. They understand that you took time out of your day to sit down and actually write out a message.
There’s also a palpability factor here: people want to hold things, feel things, and intimately experience things. The desire to physically hold something and read it will never be trumped by the net (well, at least not for me 
).
Give it a shot. If time permits, send someone a nice letter instead of an email. I can almost guarantee that you’ll experience praise and joy from the recipient.
Monday, January 15 by David Askaripour in Marketing | 3 Comments
The last time I checked MTV has about a billion reality shows nowadays. They started strong with The Real World, but since then have created a reality show for just about anything you can imagine.
MTV is either the smartest television company or the corniest. Help me out here, guys. We can all attest to watching — and enjoying — The Real World at some point in our lives. Right?
We enjoy watching a bunch of people “picked to live together” in a luxurious home where they get drunk, have sex, and party hard. It’s amusing, no doubt.
But what’s with this flurry of realities shows they now offer? I’ll name a few that I can think of:
-
Laguna Beach:
This show makes me sick. It’s a show about a few rich kids in California who fight over boys, cry about rumors, and go to the beach. I actually sat through a few episodes of this show one day and I got up feeling mentally challenged. It was that bad.
-
My Super Sweet Sixteen:
A show about rich kids who want to throw a “super sweet sixteen.” It’s based around young girls or boys (yeah, I guess they have sweet sixteen’s as well) begging their parents for an expensive party and getting a car at the end.
- Hmm… what’s another. Oh,
Pimp My Ride:
A show that revolves around rap star Xzibit going around to homes in California and granting kids who drive broken down cars with a new “pimped out” ride.
fill in the blank
At first site I would think that MTV is diluting their brand with this onslaught of corny reality shows. But after some thought, they may be smarter than I think.
Why? Because people actually watch these shows! MTV is selling the dream to the masses.
The girls who want to be rich and spend their days doing their nails and gossiping about boys all day are flocking to Laguna Beach. The guys who are into driving flashy cars are flocking to Pimp My Ride. And the young girls who are dreaming about having that super sweet sixteen bash are salivating over the My Super Sweet Sixteen show.
People are really eating these shows up. What’s corny to me is brilliant to others. So what can we learn from MTV as young entrepreneurs?
Well, MTV built their reality show franchise with a bang! They started with The Real World which shaped their entire reality show industry. From that one show, they were able to build an army of reality shows with similar success.
If you plan on building a series of products or services, then you better start of with something brilliant! Something great. Something revolutionary. Your first service has to be good enough to pave the path for continued businesses.
The strategy should be to build something so well-executed and so stellar, that everything you build after will share in some of the success with the original service. Sure, it may not be as great as the first service — or it may be better — but the chances of it surviving are exponentially greater if you succeed with your flagship service.
The last thing that you want to do is create a series of “so-so” services when you haven’t already established yourself with a single brilliant service. You can’t add more apartments to a building with a weak foundation, it’ll crumble.
Build a strong foundation and focus all your energy on strengthening your flagship service. Your first service is going to give you the necessary credibility to build future services. It all starts from the one excellent service. If you simply throw multiple services at people without establishing yourself with something noteworthy, then all you’re doing is overextending yourself and destroying your brand.
Once your brand is destroyed, don’t expect to recover. Take the time to build up your main service. Build a solid foundation. Then, and only then, move onto building another service and so on and so on…
What do you think, has MTV overextend their brand? What are your thoughts on creating multiple services for your company — do you need a solid foundation first?
Wednesday, January 10 by David Askaripour in Marketing | Leave a Comment
See that title above… well don’t think that it’s a fancy title for this post, because it isn’t. When I say become a “walking and talking marketing machine” I literally mean it.
Last night I attend a technology event here in New York City and I made sure to wear my Mind Petals shirt. On the front of the tee it clearly stated “MINDPETALS.COM” and on the back it stated “Infinite Ideas to Bloom,” which in the community tagline that we have all come to know.
Walking around – especially at an entrepreneurship event – with your company name laid out across your chest and your back is an extremely powerful marketing tactic.
People are naturally curious and they always want to “find out more,” so by conspicuously displaying your company name as you walk around and meet people, you are bound to get plenty of questions.
You’ll get a lot of “what’s that?” and “oh… I heard of that company…” These are the types of questions and statements that you’ll use to launch your pitch about your company and to start spreading the word – you know, what you do, who you are, and the future of your company (all that good stuff).
A great place to get some shirts or sweaters with your company name on them is from a neat site called customInk. You can customize your own apparel there in a few simple steps and have your branded clothes in no time.
Never underestimate the power of having clothing with your company name on it; when it comes to self-promotion and sparking word of mouth marketing, it’s really a necessary thing to do.
And at the end of the day, what entrepreneur wouldn’t want to sport their company name? It’s something that you should be proud of and it’s a ton of fun talking to people about your company and letting them know what it’s all about. Great feeling.
Thursday, January 4 by David Askaripour in Marketing | Leave a Comment
“Banana Republic has the hottest dresses and I would never think twice about shopping at JC Penny for a dress.” “I only trust Tech Crunch for the latest Web 2.0 news because they have the most accurate stories.” “I hate shopping at Home Depot because their customer service is horrible.”
All of those statements written above are examples of thoughts of what people may be thinking about particular companies. That’s exactly what “positioning” is all about.
In the army soldiers are positioned in strategic points across the battlefield in order to me most effective against the enemy. In business, companies are carefully positioned in the minds of the market to bring about favorable feelings and emotions about a particular service or product.
As a young entrepreneur one of the most important tasks that you’ll have to excel at is properly positioning your company in the minds of your customers. It’s not an easy task, but it’s a must and there’s little room for error.
Gates secured his position with Microsoft. Branson with Virgin. Buffet with Berkshire Hathaway. Walton with Walmart and Sam’s Club. And the list goes on… All of these entrepreneurs were able to successfully bring about positive thoughts and great trust for their companies in the minds of their customers.
When customers are so happy and enthusiastic about your service, they seldom think about ever using an alternative. They become loyal users of your product and speak highly about it every chance that they get.
Having a strong position with your company creates a fertile ground for evangelist — people who become so entrenched with your spectacular service that it truly becomes a part of their lives; it becomes more than just a great service in their minds. As corny as it sounds, your service becomes their “friend.”
You must be cognizant about the position of your service at all times. As yourself this: “What is the current position of my company? Why is my position this way? How can I improve my position?”
These questions will help you understand what’s going on in the minds of your customers and how they perceive your service. But please, if you don’t know what your position is then you are flying blind and need to figure it out as soon as possible. The worst thing possible is not having a position at all.
Grab a piece of paper and start answering those questions. Take some time to really brainstorm and also begin to think about the position of your competitors. If you understand your position and the position of your competitors as well, then you are one deadly entrepreneur who can truly make big things happen with the proper strategy and determination.
Monday, December 18 by David Askaripour in Marketing | 2 Comments
Do you have a sexual fantasy? I bet you do. Actually, studies show that most people have sexual fantasies on daily basis – actually, a few times per day. What are you thinking about right now?
My sexual fantasy starts out in a dark room with…. Just kidding, you won’t be hearing about my sexual fantasies in this article, but I’d like to talk about making members/clients fantasize about your business. What makes sexy services sexy.
When you think about your startup, do you think sexy? If you don’t, then you better think again. Sex is everywhere. Sex sells. Sex is on our minds. So sex should be incorporated in your startup.
When I wake up every morning I go through a list of various sites that I check. First, of course, I check my own sites. I then proceed to checking my facebook account, myspace account, then I begin running through various important blogs that keep me in the know of technology, “web2.0,” venture capital, and new startups around the world.
Ever wonder why you check the same blogs, sites, and services every single day? I’ll tell you. You check them because they are sexy to you.
- facebook is sexy because it updates me on what’s going on with my friends. If I want to know who is in a relationship with who, facebook never lets me down. If I want to know which one of my friends just came out of the closet, then facebook notifies me when they suddenly become interested in men or women(yikes!). If I want to know who that person was in the picture taken with me when I was too intoxicated to remember that night, then facebook tells me. All of these things contribute to the sex appeal of facebook.
- Techcrunch is sexy because it keeps me well informed about new startups are the world. When I want to know the name of the 18 year-old CEO who just started that new photo-sharing site, then techcrunch can tell me. When I want to know which web2.0 company just received 10M in funding, then I jump on over to techcrunch. And when I want to find out the latest gossip on what’s happening in the valley with so-and-so, guess what, I check techcrunh.
- MySpace is sexy because I get to listen to the music that my friends are in to. MySpace allows me to connect to other people who share the same interest as me. When I want to promote my business, MySpace never let’s me down. When I want to talk about the latest episode of “HOUSE” or “Lost”, I sign onto MySpace and start commenting on my friends’ profiles. These things make MySpace super sexy.
When I wake up in the morning, I check these sites because they bring me joy. Think of it like this, if you have sex with someone and enjoy it, then you are going to have a positive connection with that person in your mind. You are going to want more of that person. That person will always be on your mind.
The same concept applies for a great service. You are going to always want that service. You have a positive connection with that service. And you don’t expect for that service to ever let you down. So what do you do? You use that service every single day and you even tell your close friends about that service to share the joy with them.
Now about the sharing… it may not be advisable to share your sexual partners with people, but please feel free to share the services that you love with them. Hehe…
So ask yourself these question: Is my service sexy? What will it take to pleasure my members/clients? Am I giving them enough? Are they coming back for more? Do I make them happy?
Coming to terms with these questions will allow you to build your service into something very sexy and appealing. Now don’t expect people to outright tell you that your service is sexy, that usually isn’t the case. Just like how people don’t share their sexual fantasies with people — they keep it to themselves. Think about it, how many people would actually take the time to write raving reviews about facebook or MySpace?
You think that college students are actually going to email you and tell you how great your service is? Yeah right! They don’t have the time or even desire for that. But feedback isn’t always necessary to know how sexy your business is becoming.
You can gauge sexiness by other things:
- Traffic » You can begin to see an snowball effect of traffic coming into your site.
- Clients » More potential clients may be reaching out to you to learn more about your business and possibly begin work with you.
- Media » Popular blogs, newspapers, magazines, and even television may begin to talk about your service. You’ll know that your business has become sexy when you read about it in Business 2.0.
- Street Buzz » These are the type of conversations that you can hear on the street when someone is talking about your service. Here’s an example of two girls: “Hey…Oh! My! God! Did you see that picture of Sarah last night on her facebook account? It! Was! Horrible!….” “ Yeah… I saw it. She needs to take care of those split ends. Like, Oh! My! God! What was she thinking…. So not cool!”
These are they types of measurement that you’ll use to determine the sexiness of your business. Keep a close eye and ear out for them, because they are the pulse of your business. A business that lacks sex appeal is the business that people will always pass on. You know, like the kid who’s always sitting alone in the corner of the room that doesn’t seem to take showers or brush his teeth. Don’t let your business be that kid.
Be flirty. Show your stuff. Walk around like you’re the hottest person in your room. And do things out of the ordinary. Make people enjoy spending with your business everyday. And, before you know it, they’ll be coming back for more of that good stuff.
Friday, December 8 by David Askaripour in Marketing | 2 Comments
Would you ever think that a video site on the internet could affect elections? Yeah that’s right, YouTube – the most popular video sharing service — played a role in this year’s election and believe it or not, had a helping hand in removing the republicans from office.
Now if YouTube can help shift things politically, imagine what it can do for you and the image of your venture.
What if you were to actually start filming what you were doing with your business on a daily basis? You could wake up in the morning and start your business as usual and throughout the day you can make a few video entries of what you are doing and why.
I think that would rock. Just imagine being able to watch other young entrepreneurs in action and having them share what they are doing to grow their business – that sort of information would be priceless!
I think that many entrepreneurs would tune in to get updates on what’s going on with the particular entrepreneurs that they are following. But what’s great about it, is the chance for young entrepreneurs to market their business.
Just think about it: if you have large audiences of people tuning in to watch your video updates on how you run your company and the information that you are sharing with the world, then they are naturally going to want to learn more about your company – the ins-and-outs of your venture.
YouTube is the perfect platform to launch these video and get the buzz going about your business. It’s a win-win: you’re helping the world of young entrepreneurs by sharing information/educating and you’re also helping to build a brand for yourself and your business at the same time. You can’t lose. Marketing meets education!
Look at Oprah, people tune into her show because they know that they are going to be educated on a particular subject, i.e., rapist, sex offenders, charity, cooking, shopping, and the list goes on. The viewers are constantly winning because they are learning and Oprah continues to solidify her position as the number one talk show host.
I would venture to say that after television, online video is the most powerful medium of communication in the world. So take advantage of that! Leverage your company with that! Time is of the essence, so get to it today.
Make sure to share your videos with us at Mind Petals, we’re waiting!
Friday, November 17 by Angela Gilltrap in Marketing | Leave a Comment
We live in a highly visual environment. Less time and more stimulation, means we rarely have the time nor the want to read the fine print. Your company’s graphic design and the colors you use greatly influence consumers.
Federal Express is a good example. The combination of their highly descriptive name and their use of the colors red, white and blue, subconsciously relay the message: just like the government post only quicker.
But the use of color is not just as simple as that. Age, race and gender also play a part in color psychology and are frequently being used to target specific markets.
For example white in North America is a symbol of purity, the stranglehold of the bridal market however, in China white means death. So to export a million white bridal dresses to China would more than likely lead to bankruptcy.