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| Brainy
Tidbits - Issue 29
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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 29 - December 23, 2003
Reading time: 10 minutes
Circulation: 892
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PLEASE FORWARD ~~~ WITHOUT CUTTING ~~~
to anyone who can use a few timely marketing
and creativity tips to improve their business.
Welcome to all our new 12 Days of Christmas subscribers!
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IN THIS ISSUE
1. Getting a Little Help From Your Friends
2. Quote of the Week
3. Time to Plan for Next Year
4. Resources for Entrepreneurs and Marketers
5. A Little Marketing Fun
6. Smell the Coffee
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1. Getting a Little Help From Your Friends
Big companies do it. And you can, too. It's called "co-op
advertising."
With traditional co-op advertising, you would create an ad,
direct mail campaign, or another type of promotion to
advertise your company and products. While you're
developing your materials, you incorporate another
company's products or services into the campaign. Because
you will also be advertising this other company's products
or services, they are willing to help you pay for the
promotion.
Big companies in every industry, like Kraft, John Deere and
Pfizer, budget big bucks to support the advertising efforts
of the companies that sell their products. So, if you do
this, you can significantly increase your advertising
budget.
For instance, perhaps you have a printing company and you
have just purchased a big, fancy Heidelberg printing press
that you want to let everyone know about. It's most
important that all the advertising agency folks know about
your new printing capabilities because they are the ones
who will hire you to do printing jobs. So, you decide to
unveil the new press at a special event. How do you get
these busy, hard-to-impress people to attend the unveiling?
One way would be to create a series of three or four
intriguing invitations, complete with specialty premiums
for added impact. You'll want to make arrangements for
co-op advertising support from each of the premium
companies, plus Heidelberg, before you finalize the
campaign.
Perhaps the first one would say, "Something special has
popped up, and we want to tell you about it. Please keep
January 30th from 5 pm to 7 pm open for a fun time." Don't
tell them who you are or exactly what the event is -- make
it mysterious. And include a bag of Pop*Secret popcorn with
the invitation. Because you will also be promoting
Pop*Secret, you would have contacted the company before you
finalized your campaign to make sure you would be eligible
for co-op ad support dollars. Understand?
Then a day or two later you would mail the second
promotional invitation, saying (for example), "Don't
forget! Keep from 5 pm to 7 pm on January 30th open for a
Cracker Jack good time. More details to come soon." And
send them a box of Frito Lay's Cracker Jacks (getting Frito
Lay to kick in advertising bucks, of course).
Finally, a week before the event, send a bottle of
champagne with the last invitation saying, "We're bubbling
all over with our news. Join us on January 30th from 5 pm
to 7 pm for our by-invitation-only party to celebrate our
expansion and the unveiling of our brand new 6-color
Heidelberg Press. XYZ Printing Company" Remember to include
your address, phone, email and website on the invitation.
Again, you would seek advertising support from the
champagne bottler AND Heidelberg.
Co-op advertising is a great way to get your "friends"
to
help you promote your business and products. And it's very
similar to the 12 Days of Christmas promotion that my
friend Mark Hendricks created for you!
I've joined him to put together a truly amazing package of
terrific marketing information products that you can
download, entirely F~REE. In fact, there are 78 products
you can get with the click of a mouse.
If you haven't already picked up my gift, go to
http://www.hunteridge.com/sales.php?offer=mktideashp&pid=50
or http://tinyurl.com/z7uf and click on the 11th day -- 11
Pipers Piping. It's called PR TACTICS 101. Plus, I've
bundled in two free bonuses. Tell your friends, too.
Because your friends are my friends, and they can get it
just for clicking, just like you.
Here's what you get:
PR Tactics 101
--> Learn the difference between PR and advertising.
--> Understand why PR should be part of your marketing plan
and how to put it to use to get people talking about you.
--> Quick links to terrific websites and resources that can
help you get the word out and find out what is said about
you.
--> Reasons why your company should use PR to get the word
out. Convince your boss to increase your budget.
How to Write a News Release
--> Step-by-step instructions on writing a news release so
you can save money by doing it yourself instead of hiring a
consultant.
--> 15 simple rules for writing the perfect news release
so
you won't put your foot in your mouth when you give it a
try.
PR Ideas for Every Occasion
--> 34 ideas for news releases that can land you great
publicity.
And did I mention that it's F~REE? That's right. I'm giving
you an $18 product, F~REE. Just because it's Christmas.
And all you have to do is visit this link and take your
pick from any (or all) of the 78 great products available!
Go on, check it out -- either link works, so go to:
The Big Ugly Link:
http://www.hunteridge.com/sales.php?offer=mktideashp&pid=50
The Smaller One: http://tinyurl.com/z7uf
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2. Quote of the Week
"Without a good marketing plan it's likely that when you
really should react to a market trend or opportunity, you
won't have the money or time available to do what you need
to do."
Lois Carter Fay, Founder, Marketing Idea Shop
Author, MARKETING PLAN ESSENTIALS: ONLINE & OFF
The ebook includes over 100 links and resources that you
can use to improve your bottom line. Learn more here:
MarketingEssentials.htm
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3. Time to Plan for Next Year
The new year is just around the corner. Now's the time to
evaluate how you did this year and set your goals for 2004.
Are you using your networks to help you grow your business?
Do you present the best image you can for yourself and your
company?
Here's a story from a business associate I think you will
enjoy, reprinted with permission, of course. Being 007 in
the movies would be fun, but don't let it happen to you in
your business.
You've Got to Work the Territory
by Leni Chauvin
Years ago, when I was a real estate agent, I had a
colleague I shall call Georgia. Georgia had everything it
takes to be a successful Realtor. She was bright,
articulate, educated and fun to be with. She knew her
product. She wrote very tight contracts and she was a great
negotiator. Probably what's even more important, though,
was that she had the good fortune of being the daughter of
very high profile, incredibly affluent, and socially
prominent parents. In other words, she was "connected."
Sounds great on paper, but the reality was that Georgia did
very little business. She really didn't have to. She had a
trust fund, after all.
She rarely came to the office, and when she did, she always
had her black Labrador retriever in tow. Her car--such an
important tool for a Realtor--looked like it should have
been condemned by the Board of Health. You know the kind I
mean: old coffee cups, pizza boxes, dog hair, overflowing
ash trays, and, as soon as you opened the door, a fragrance
that can only be described as "eau de wet doggie."
In spite of herself, every now and again, Georgia would
write up a great sale. Her clients inevitably were friends
of her parents, and their business just sort of fell into
her lap. Don't get me wrong. Georgia was a very good
Realtor--WHEN she chose to work. Nobody would provide
better service or work harder to make a deal come
together.
She cared about her clients (when she had some), and worked
very hard on their behalf. The only thing that kept Georgia
from being a GREAT Realtor was the fact that she didn't
have to work and so never concerned herself with the
mundane things that the rest of us tend to think about,
like getting clients, for instance.
This really hit me, when one Sunday afternoon when I was in
the office to pick up some keys for an early morning
showing the next day. In ran Georgia (and her Lab), frantic
because she and the dog had been in the park. She had lost
track of time, and now was panic stricken because she had
to do an evaluation on a property for a potential listing
(naturally friends of Mom and Dad's) and was running out of
time.
Among the many things she needed to get done in a hurry was
a massive amount of photocopying. I volunteered to help,
and as I went to the copier, she yelled out, "Just use
my
code." (Our office charged the agents for their
photocopies, and we had to key in our identification codes
before we could access the machine.)
"What's your code?" I asked.
"Double-oh-seven," she replied.
"Double-oh-seven?" I laughed.
"Yes," she said. "The manager says I do so little
prospecting, I might as well be a secret agent!"
She was right, you know. She really was a secret agent. She
never bothered to tell people what she did for a living.
She never looked for business. She never became active in
community organizations or in the local Real Estate Board.
She never volunteered for anything. She never wrote
articles. She never helped anyone else advance their
career. She never created opportunities to speak before her
peers. She never made the most of her connections.
She never thought about the fact that the people she knew
could bring her business in the form of referrals. Instead
she waited for whatever business she did have to fall in
her lap, courtesy of Mom and Dad who periodically did some
networking on her behalf.
She never sought business the way most of us have to do.
She didn't form strategic alliances. She didn't join
networking groups. She didn't attend industry conventions.
In her case, it really didn't matter of course, because she
had that trust fund to fall back on. How many of the rest
of us, I wonder, without the good fortune of inherited
wealth, act as though we're secret agents, too?
Maybe I'm all wrong here, but it seems to me James Bond is
the only Secret Agent I've heard of who is truly
successful. He's making a fortune. Everyone knows who he
is. He's got people lined up around the block, anxious to
part with their money, just to spend a few hours watching
him do what he does best.
The rest of us, I'm afraid, aren't so lucky. We need to be
out and about seeing the people we need to see, making the
contacts we need to make, and doing everything we need to
do in order to survive in these competitive times.
We need specific, measurable, and time-delineated goals to
increase and strengthen our networks, and we need concrete
plans of action to help us achieve those goals. We need to
remember to ask for referrals and to remember to give
referrals generously.
We also need to hone our time management skills so we're
able to prospect effectively AND still have a life. BOTTOM
LINE: The only time it pays to be a Secret Agent is when
you're in the movies or have inherited wealth.
Unfortunately, it is incumbent upon the rest of us to
prospect like crazy.
(c) 1999,2003 Leni Chauvin. Leni Chauvin is a Business
Success Coach and Strategist who is an expert in building
business through strong referral networks. Visit
http://www.superstarnetworking.com to register for Leni's
next "Attract Clients Galore (tm)" telephone course
and to
subscribe to NETWORKING GAZETTE, her F~REE e-mail
newsletter packed with tips to help you grow YOUR
business.
It's time to write your marketing plan! MARKETING PLAN
ESSENTIALS: ONLINE & OFF is a great place to start. Learn
more about this idea-filled ebook.
Visit the "big ugly link"
MarketingEssentials.htm
or this shorter one: http://tinyurl.com/3gy2a
To order offline, call 1-800-203-8660 or 1-540-289-3840.
*~*~*~*~*Marketing Tool for You*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Want to beat the pants off your competitors? Sign up,
gratis, for What's Next Online, B.L. Ochman's fluff-free,
bi-weekly Internet marketing tactics newsletter. Subscribe:
http://www.whatsnextonline.com/?AffiliateID=2003055525
Also read B.L.'s blog
http://www.whatsnextblog.com/?AffiliateID=2003055525
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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4. Resources for Entrepreneurs and Marketers
--> It's almost Christmas and it's a good time to remember
the world's hungry people. Here's a site where you can
donate food to needy people around the world just using
your computer mouse. The site's sponsors donate money to
the campaign for each c*lick. The money is divided between
two hunger-relief groups: America's Second Harvest and
Mercy Corps. Stop by this site!
http://www.thehungersite.com
--> Would you like to know what your keyword count for your
website is? Keywords help search engines find your website,
so they are super important. Here's a f~ree tool:
http://www.keywordcount.com/
--> Want to get your website visitors to come back again
and again? Improve the "stickiness" with f~ree content
from
here:
http://www.freesticky.com/stickyweb/
--> Ever wonder how someone adds a graphic of what's shown
on their computer screen to a document? Just depress the
keys "Alt" and "Print Screen" at the same
time. That copies
the screenshot to your clipboard. Then go to the document
where you want to insert it and paste it ("Control"
+ "V").
It works in most Windows-based programs.
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5. A Little Marketing Fun
The "King of Spin" -- George Bush -- is so "into"
communicating with his public, that he even asks for
feedback from protesters. A sign at his office says, "We
want everyone to be satisfied, so when you protest our
office, we would appreciate it if you would please pick up
an evaluation form and fill it out."
You can take a look at the form online here:
http://www.ahajokes.com/f003.html
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6. Smell the Coffee...
Our oldest and her family arrived last night to stay for
the week. I plan to take afternoons off all week to spend
some time with them. Little Madeline is 10 months old. We
all love having her (and her parents, of course!) here for
the holidays. Even the dog, Lulu, loves her. But Lulu
thinks Madeline is a puppy so we have to watch them very
closely!
Here's wishing you a happy and safe holiday. And may 2004
bring PEACE and JOY to the world.
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MORE 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! Remember, we are constantly adding new
products to our store.
http://www.marketingideashop.com
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THE FINE PRINT
THANK YOU!
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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 with lots of brainy
marketing ideas for you.
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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