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Brainy Tidbits - Issue 20
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
MarketingIdeaShop BRAINY Tidbits
The ezine with brainy ideas & resources
for marketers & small businesses
This newsletter brought to you each Tuesday by
Lois Carter Fay & The Marketing Idea Shop
http://www.marketingideashop.com
mailto:lcf@marketingideashop.com
Issue 20 - November 4, 2003
Reading time: 10 minutes
Circulation: 525
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
PLEASE FORWARD ~~~ WITHOUT CUTTING ~~~
to anyone who can use a few timely marketing
and creativity tips to improve their business.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
IN THIS ISSUE
1. Solving the Pain
2. Get on Public Radio
3. Only One Week Left
4. Quote of the Week
5. 101 Marketing Tips: Why Use an Ad Agency
6. Resources for Entrepreneurs and Marketers
7. A Little Marketing Fun
8. Smell the Coffee
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
1. Solving the Pain
The most successful professional salespeople have mastered
the art of getting the prospect to open up and reveal not
only needs, but real pain.
Most buying decisions are made emotionally and one of the
strongest emotions known to man is pain. People will go to
great lengths to alleviate or avoid it, including paying
top dollar.
Here are some thoughts on finding out about your prospect's
pain from 52 READY-TO-GO SALES MEETINGS, the ebook by sales
guru Jim Wilson and me:
--> Get your prospect's pain on the table early in the
interview.
--> Listen carefully.
--> Make sure you get all the pain out.
--> How long has she had this pain?
--> What happened the last time she tried to solve or cure
it?
--> What is it costing the prospect to have this pain?
--> How much is the prospect willing to budget to get rid
of the pain?
The key to the sales interview is the salesperson's ability
to ask the disturbing questions in a natural,
non-threatening manner. Remember, no pain ... no change!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*SPECIAL OFFER~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You can get more ideas like these in our ebook, 52
READY-TO-GO SALES MEETINGS, here:
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/javanof.asp?MerchantID=41484&ProductID=1404031
If the link is broken, copy it and paste it into your
browser window.
To order offline, call 1-800-203-8660 or 1-540-289-3840.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Solving the Pain" continued...
One person who has figured out a "pain" that needs a
solution is Sylvia Acevedo, an entrepreneur from Austin,
Texas, who has produced a unique line of products to help
Spanish-speaking people and English-speaking people
communicate with each other without words. Acevedo was
nominated as a successful woman business owner to be
included in my upcoming ebook, SUCCESS SECRETS OF WOMEN
ENTREPRENEURS, due to be published in spring.
Her "CommuniCards" are fold-out picture cards that fit in a
shirt pocket. So far, there are six products, each
targeting a different type of job. There's a set of
"playing cards" for house cleaning and pocket cards for
lawn care, construction clean-up, painting, trenching, and
drywall. Although the company is just a few months old,
CommuniCards are so unique they are already garnering good
publicity. The jury is still out on whether she will
ultimately be successful, but I predict she will be. To
find out more about this product, visit the website:
http://www.thecommunicard.com
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*SPECIAL OFFER~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Don't forget to order your copy of SUCCESS SECRETS OF WOMEN
ENTREPRENEURS now at its pre-release price and save $10.
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/javanof.asp?MerchantID=41484&ProductID=1510419
If the link is broken, copy it and paste it into your
browser window.
To order offline, call 1-800-203-8660 or 1-540-289-3840.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
2. Get on Public Radio
Would you like to get your business on public radio? You
might have what it takes to get on the "Brain Brew Radio
Show." To find out, read this profile by MarketingSherpa,
reprinted here with permission.
--> Contact information:
Corie Roudebush
Producer
Brain Brew Radio
800-272-4627
http://www.brainbrewradio.com
mailto:corie@brainbrewradio.com
--> Listeners
The show is syndicated by Public Radio International and is
broadcast on 13 stations throughout the United States. It
also airs on Sirius and online at
http://www.brainbrewradio.com
. Because Brain Brew is a new
show (launched in April), audience data does not yet
exist.
--> Roudebush's background
Actually, Roudebush doesn't have much of a background to
speak of. "I'm fairly young," she admits. She majored in
Communications at a small liberal arts college, then "went
into politics for three years." When that wasn't fun
anymore, she moved to Brain Brew Radio, where she's the
only full-time employee.
But don't let Roudebush's age fool you: she may be young
but she's the gatekeeper. All pitches go through her.
-->Current editorial coverage
The show strives to "help people think quicker, smarter,
and more creatively," Roudebush says. It's geared toward
business people and entrepreneurs. While it sounds like a
live show, it is actually pre-recorded and airs weekly.
Brain Brew encompasses two very different types of
interview:
#1. Entrepreneur Jump-Starts
For these interviews, hosts Doug Hall and David Wecker talk
with people who want to change careers, start their own
businesses, have their own businesses, or have invented
something. The interviewee shares information about the
business and the business "problem." Then Doug and Dave
offer ideas to help improve their odds of business
success.
Recent guests included a man who invented an invisible
speaker system ("He's obsessive about architecture and
hated seeing speakers attached to ceilings," says
Roudebush) and a man who sells seaweed ("They asked who he
sells to, and he said, 'To people who like seaweed.' He has
over a million-dollar business.").
While this type of interview will certainly get you
national exposure, it is geared to help you in your
business, rather than to position you as an expert.
#2. 30-Second Gurus
"We ask people who have had extreme success in their field
to break down their success in a 30-second monologue,"
Roudebush explains. "Then they have a 10- to 15-minute
discussion with Doug and Dave."
Gurus can be successes in marketing, creative thinking,
advertising -- any topic across the board that's relevant
to small business owners.
Recent Gurus included Scott Bedbury (creator of Nike's
"Just Do It" campaign), Sergio Zyman of Coke marketing
fame, and Garfield-creator Jim Davis.
-->What Brain Brew hosts look for in radio guests
Besides looking for experts in a variety of business
fields, Roudebush needs guests with two attributes:
Attribute #1: The ability to target your expertise to small
business owners (the show's main listener base).
"This is the most important part, because often we get
people who do not have the ability to bring (their
knowledge) down to the level outside of corporate America,"
Roudebush says.
Attribute #2: A sense of humor
"A lot of times we get people who know their stuff but they
just don't have an entertaining way of presenting it," she
says. "We take our guests very seriously, but we have a
good sense of humor about it."
Warning: If you do get on the show but have no personality,
they won't air your interview.
-->The best way to pitch Roudebush
If you'd like to be interviewed for an Entrepreneur
Jump-Start, the best way to contact Roudebush is through
the Web site. Go to http://www.brainbrewradio.com/guest.asp
and fill out a short questionnaire that asks about your
business and business challenge. Roudebush reviews all
submissions and will contact you for more information or to
set up an interview.
Most 30-Second Gurus come to the show through publicists,
Roudebush says. However, that's not a necessity.
"If you have written a book, send your book, because we
will always ask for copy," she says.
Include a press kit with your background information, a
summary of what you'd like to talk about, and a summary of
the main points of the book. (Note: the book does not have
to be published by one of the biggies. "We look at
everything, big publisher or small," says Roudebush.)
If you don't have a book, email Roudebush at
mailto:corie@brainbrewradio.com
and let her know what
you're an expert in and what your 30-second spot would
cover. Focus the pitch as "My advice on success in XYZ," or
"The secret to success in XYZ." Include a resume.
Again, show Roudebush a glimmer of personality or sense of
humor and you're more likely to win an interview.
Follow up with her after a week or two if you haven't heard
back, either by phone or again by email. "Sometimes I get a
little backlogged, but I will always let them know," she
says.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*NEWS FLASH~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yanik Silver has given me the rights to distribute one of
his terrific special reports! Get Yanik's 14-POINT WEB COPY
ANALYSIS report absolutely F~REE. In it you'll learn all
the steps to writing an effective direct mail letter. Learn
how to do it from the master. You can get it from my
shopping cart. Click:
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Plus, as an added bonus, when you read this report, you
will be treated to audio copy as well as the written words.
You can generate audio for your own website and email
quickly and easily using Audio Generator. Check that out
here:
http://members.audiogenerator.com/special/?x=46134
If these links are broken, copy and paste the link into
your browser window.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Public Radio" article continued...
-->Pet peeves
People calling incessantly. Show some restraint, and she'll
get back to you within a couple of weeks.
-->Deadlines
No real deadlines for the show. "For the next couple of
months our recording schedule is very sporadic; it all
depends on Doug's travel schedule," Roudebush explains.
In a perfect world, they record every Friday from 9 to noon
Eastern time.
-->Tips for success if you do land an interview:
**Tip #1. Script your 30 seconds.
**Tip #2. Be prepared to have fun.
Straight-arrow types tend to not meld with the hosts'
personalities, Roudebush says.
**Tip #3. No speaker phones and no cell phones. Always use
a land line.
**Tip #4. Request a do-over.
Remember that the show is pre-recorded and you have the
opportunity to repeat yourself. "If they start their
monologue and feel like they're tripping, they can start
over. We've done that many times," says Roudebush.
**Tip #5. Relax, you're not live.
There are only five people actually listening at the time
of the interview. And they'll edit the conversation to take
out all your "um's."
Copyright 2002-2003 MarketingSherpa, Inc.,
http://www.marketingSherpa.com
It is forbidden to copy this article in any manner. For
permissions, contact service@sherpastore.com
or call (973)
895-1717.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*SPECIAL OFFER~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
-->Get your complimentary copy of MarketingSherpa's "Top
10
Online & Email Marketing Mistakes." This practical guide
reveals the 10 most dangerous "e-mistakes" and how to avoid
them. Download it right away when you subscribe to
MarketingSherpa's ezine: http://www.SherpaWeekly.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
3. There's Only One Week Left to Sign Up
*****SIGN UP NOW OR MISS OUT ON A GREAT SEMINAR*****
DEVELOPING AN INTERNET MARKETING PLAN
November 12, 2003
8:30 to 11:30 am
$55 per person
Location:
VECTEC Conference Room
1 University Place
Newport News, VA 23606-2998
Phone (757) 594-7092
mailto:info@vectec.org?subject=Internet_Marketing_Plan
Seating is limited
Register today!
http://www.vectec.org
(757) 594-7092
Here's what you'll get when you attend "Developing an
Internet Marketing Plan":
-> F~ree continental breakfast so you won't be hungry while
you are learning all these new things.
-> F~ree ebook: MARKETING PLAN ESSENTIALS: ONLINE & OFF
by
Lois Carter Fay (me!) so you can remember what I taught
you.
-> A minimum of 3 ideas (and probably many, many more) you
can put to use right away so you can start getting better
results from your marketing immediately.
-> How 5 viral marketing campaigns spread like wildfire,
and how you can modify their ideas to drive sales for your
products and services.
-> The 3 things you must include in your online plan to
drive traffic and sales to your website or brick-and-mortar
business.
-> At least 2 strategies to improve your Google page rank
dramatically so you get a bigger share of your market and
beat your competitors (not literally, of course...you take
away their customers).
-> 4 ideas for working WITH your competitors to get more
business for everyone.
-> How to win in the word-of-mouth game so you can stop
working so darn hard.
-> And a f~ree one-half-hour phone consultation with me to
help you put your ideas in action.
How can you take a pass on this? Sign up today! And
hurry...because seating is limited.
To register online go to: http://www.vectec.org
and sign up
on the site. Or, call (757) 594-7092.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*SPECIAL OFFER~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you can't attend the seminar, pick up a copy of my new
ebook, MARKETING PLAN ESSENTIALS: ONLINE & OFF. You'll find
tons of great ideas to help you with your marketing. And if
you order it before it's published on November 14, you'll
save ten bucks.
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/javanof.asp?MerchantID=41484&ProductID=1485157
If the link is broken, copy it and paste it into your
browser window.
Or, call 540-289-3840 or 1-800-203-8660 to order it over
the phone with your credit card. You can also mail me a
check if you prefer. Be sure to send a note with your
payment, telling me what you want:
Lois Carter Fay
Marketing Idea Shop
411 Rainier Road
Massanutten, VA 22840
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
4. Quote of the Week
"To love what you do and feel that it matters -- how could
anything be more fun?"
~~Katherine
Graham, former publisher of The
Washington Post
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
5. 101 Marketing Tips by Robert Grede
Tip #12: Why Use an Ad Agency
An ad agency marks up production and media 15 percent or
more and they don't know nearly as much about your products
as you do. So, who needs an ad agency?
You might. Here are three good reasons why:
--> Agencies take the burden of the production process off
your hands. They make sure everything is done right and on
time.
-->You generally pay the same price for media whether or
not you use an agency, and they're better at planning and
buying.
-->You may know how to write a good headline, or where to
contact a good illustrator, or how to specify (spec) type,
judge a printer's proof, or produce a TV spot. But it's not
likely you can do all those things well. Agencies have
specialist who do these things.
Ad agency professionals know advertising and they know how
to apply it to your business.
[Did you know that Strategic Business Partners, my
consulting company, is an advertising agency? Need help?
Email me at
mailto:lcf@marketingideashop.com?subject=AdAgency
or call
me at 540.289.3840. ~ Lois]
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*LEARN MORE~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
© 2003 by Robert Grede. Robert Grede is the author of NAKED
MARKETING - THE BARE ESSENTIALS (Prentice Hall) and an
acclaimed speaker. To find out more:
http://www.thegredecompany.com
or order his book through
Amazon. Look it up by name under "books":
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect-home/marketingidea-20
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
6. Resources for Entrepreneurs and Marketers
--> Don't miss out on these pre-publishing bargains!
Marketing Idea Shop will soon introduce two new ebooks,
MARKETING PLAN ESSENTIALS: ONLINE & OFF (to be published
November 14) and SUCCESS SECRETS OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS
(coming in Spring 2004). Buy them NOW before they are
published and save $10. I'll send them to you when they are
available.
Essentials:
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/javanof.asp?MerchantID=41484&ProductID=1485157
Secrets:
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/javanof.asp?MerchantID=41484&ProductID=1510419
To order offline, call 540-289-3840 or 800-203-8660 and
have your credit card handy.
--> Wondering if that email about the great business
opportunity you received from your cousin Suzie is real?
It's probably not. Remember that most things that seem too
good to be true usually are. But you can check it out
here:
http://www.europe.f-secure.com/news/hoax.htm
--> This website is designed to help technology
entrepreneurs learn the basics about going into business
and succeeding in Virginia. Lots of great information for
any business owner.
http://www.innovationavenue.com/
--> Learn how to make money on the Internet from one of the
best, Tom Antion. His ebook, CLICK: THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO
ELECTRONIC MARKETING FOR SPEAKERS, has over 700 embedded
links and is 553 pages. You'll get the latest strategies
for high search engine rankings, Tom's proven method for
making big bucks on the Net, and much more. Read about it
here:
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/aftrack.asp?AFID=97748&u=www.antion.com/click.htm
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
7. A Little Marketing Fun
Learning how to speak like your customers can be fun and
interesting. Since I'm originally from Wisconsin
(pronounced Wis-GAN-Son by natives), I had to learn a whole
new language when I moved to Virginia. Not only is soda
(pronounced SO-da with that Minnesota long O sound in
Wisconsin) called pop, but take a look at these:
myep-ya: May I help you?
mear-mint: Come here a minute.
o-vair: Over there.
rat-chere: Right here
y'all: You all
All-y'all: Plural of y'all
purt-n-nir: Pretty near
;->
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
8. Smell the Coffee...
The saga of the hungry deer continues. We planted several
clumps of day lilies a week ago and Bambi ate the tops off
all of them. So it's unlikely they will ever grow enough to
bloom...but we can hope. Since we had another box of lilies
to plant, we decided to plant them INSIDE the fence. At
least we will be able to enjoy the flowers. However, it
does look like our daffodils are safe. Win Harrington of
http://www.PrivateSchoolForFree.com
wrote, "Your daffodil
bulbs are safe, because they are poisonous. No animal will
eat them." I was not aware of that.
Virginia is such a great place to live. Here it is November
4, and the weather has been 70-75 degrees five days in a
row. Most of the leaves have fallen and we can now see the
beauty of the mountains as they rise so blue against the
pink sky in the mornings. I certainly makes it easier to
get out of bed each morning.
I wish you a profitable and beauty-filled week.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
FULL LIST OF PRODUCTS
I encourage you to visit the Marketing Idea Shop website
for lots more information. Plus, you'll find a lovely
picture of me there!
http://www.marketingideashop.com
Remember, we are constantly adding new products to our
store. For a full list of products available from Marketing
Idea Shop, check out this link or copy and paste it into
your browser:
all
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
THE FINE PRINT
THANK YOU!
We appreciate your business.
You are receiving this because you asked to receive it, you
signed up for it at the Marketing Idea Shop website --
http://www.marketingideashop.com -- or one
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Note: When you sign up to receive this ezine, you will need
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Tidbits" (except those with a copyright listed from another
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be kind and send us a copy so we can see it in print. Also,
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Reprinted from "MarketingIdeaShop BRAINY Tidbits," a F~REE
ezine from Marketing Idea Shop and Lois Carter Fay
featuring brainy ideas and resources for marketers and
small businesses. Subscribe today at
http://www.marketingideashop.com and receive
F~REE by
email "67 Ways to Promote Your Business."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Published by:
Lois Carter Fay, APR
Founder, Marketing Idea Shop
and President, Strategic Business Partners
Lois Carter Fay is a writing and marketing expert with a
bunch of gray hairs (no, not from worrying...it's just what
comes with experience). Strategic Business Partners is a
marketing consulting firm with ideas and strategies to grow
your business. Marketing Idea Shop is an online resource
for marketers and small businesses.
411 Rainier Road, Massanutten, VA USA 22840
Voice 540.289.3840 or 800.203.8660
lcf@marketingideashop.com
http://www.marketingideashop.com
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
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