Welcome to all our brainy new subscribers!


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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
mailto:editor@marketingideashop.com


Issue 46 - April 6, 2004
Reading time: 10 minutes

Circulation:  1359


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PLEASE FORWARD ~~~ WITHOUT CUTTING ~~~
to anyone who can use a few timely marketing
and creativity tips to improve their business.


This is an opt~in email - By subscription only
You are receiving this newsletter because you requested
it.

You can manage your subscription easily at the end of the
newsletter.


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IN THIS ISSUE

1.   Important Announcement: Email Change
2.   Build Traffic with Contests
2a. Brainy Contest
3.   Mailbag Ideas
4.   Quote of the Week
5.   PR & Networking Opportunities
6.   Resources for Entrepreneurs and Marketers
7.   A Little Fun
8.   Smell the Coffee


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1.   IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Email Change

I've started to actively use my sorting and filtering
options in Outlook Express. I assume that many of you are
also doing this. And what I've found is that it's hard to
sort the emails into folders if I get a newsletter from
someone and also get regular email correspondence from
this person because their email address is the same for both
types of correspondence. Consequently, important email
correspondence might get shifted into a "read anytime"
folder.

I hate it when that happens! Don't you?

Therefore, I have decided to change my email address for
BRAINY Tidbits. Future newsletters will be sent from my
new email address. Please adjust your filters accordingly and
add this new address to your whitelist or buddy list:


editor@marketingideashop.com


Never fear, though. Your email will get through to me if
you send it to either email address.

Since this is an important announcement, I'll be sending
out a special "BRAINY Flash" message at the end of this
week to remind you. That way, you will be sure to get
BRAINY Tidbits next week, just as always.

And watch for a special offer in it!


Thanks,
Lois


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2.   Build Traffic with Contests

You've seen them. Contests on your favorite websites. Oh,
go on. Admit it. You've entered contests.

I know I have. Especially if I thought I might win or if
the contest was sponsored by someone I know and trust.

**************************************************
Why run a contest? What's your goal?
**************************************************

Website contests can really build traffic. And the more
visitors you have, the more they'll tell their friends, so
the more traffic you will have. It's a blissful circle.

And why do you need traffic on your website? Because the
more people who visit your website, the more sales you
will
make. It's that old "numbers game" that people talk about
when they are in sales.

Also, if you participate in affiliate programs and joint
ventures, you may need to provide stats about how many
visitors you have. The more visitors you have, the more
likely others will want to joint venture with you. And the
more money you'll make. [Are you seeing a pattern yet?]

**************************************************
What's your theme? And do you need one?
**************************************************

Running a contest is a form of advertising, so having a
theme that you can use throughout the contest period is a
good way to get people to buy in to your contest and help
you meet your goals. You can tie your contest to a
particular holiday or event, create your own holiday to
promote, come up with an off-the-wall concept or one that
is traditional. Whatever you do, just do it consistently
throughout the contest period. 

**************************************************
Will you have sponsors?
**************************************************

Sponsorship gives like-minded businesses the opportunity
to ride on your coattails during the contest promotion. They
get exposure to your email list by joining with you to
offer prizes.

Adding prizes from other businesses can give your contest
more credibility, as well as take some of the pressure off
you. It's a great way to structure a joint venture, and if
you can do it with your affiliates (the people who sell
your products or you sell their products for a commission
fee), you can both make money on the sales. Of course you
will have to give your sponsors credit for their
participation. They agree to participate because of the
advertising and income-producing possibilities, so make
sure all of your communications mention them.

You can also sponsor a contest with your own products as
prizes or use prizes that you have purchased to give away
to your winners.

**************************************************
What kind of contest?
**************************************************

You can ask your visitors to offer ideas about your site,
ask them to send you a quote to include in your
newsletter, have them answer a question about you or your business,
or have them send you resources that would be helpful to your
newsletter subscribers or website visitors. You can even
ask them to help you build your subscriber list. You're
only limited by your creativity.

**************************************************
What are the rules?
**************************************************

Whatever you do, the rules for your contest must be
clearly articulated. Spell out the details in your newsletter and
on your website. Restate your privacy policy, tell them
how the winner(s) will be chosen and how many winners you will
have, who your sponsors are and what the prizes are.

Decide how many times someone can enter the contest and
include that in the rules. List how long the contest will
continue. Note that the Internet is not foolproof and that
it is not your responsibility if entries are lost or other
things happen that are out of your control.

**************************************************
What information do you want to collect?
**************************************************

When designing the entry form, don't ask for information
that you don't need, but do ask for everything that would
be helpful. How did they find your website so that they
would enter the contest? Do you need their name and
address? Or just their email address?

If you are creating a contest, there are many legalities
involved. Be sure to enlist the help of an attorney to
avoid any potential problems around this issue. If it is
not for children, consider including a statement that the
contest is for people 18 years old and older.

How will you be notified of the entries? Set up your form
so that you receive an email every time someone enters. Be
sure to save the entries in a file and back up the file
daily.

**************************************************
Promote your contest.
**************************************************

Will you promote the contest in your newsletter? On your
website? Through advertising and PR? There are many
website owners who will promote your contest for you on their
sites with a link or a banner. Some will want a reciprocal link
to their site as "payment." Go ahead and do this if the
two companies are compatible and the link would be relevant.

You can also write an article and submit it to various
websites, buy pay-per-click advertising and send out a
press release announcing the contest.

**************************************************
Pick a winner.
**************************************************

Your contest rules, of course, should specify how the
winner will be chosen. It could be something  as simple as
randomly choosing an email or entry, If you do this, then
you should try to get a third-party to do the picking.

Whatever you do, be sure to be fair and honest.

**************************************************
What now?
**************************************************

Once the winner is chosen, you'll need to notify the
winner and publicize the results. You can do this in your
newsletter, on your website and/or in an email to all the
contestants.

If the contest is a spectacular success, you may want to
publicize the results further by sending out a press
release. And then begin planning your next one!

**************************************************
BRAINY Contest: Springtime Subscriber
**************************************************

MarketingIdeaShop BRAINY Tidbits is running a contest!

[What a surprise, huh?]

It's true. It's our "Springtime Subscriber" contest, so
named because it's Spring and I'm looking for more
qualified subscribers. [Clever, don't ya think?]

Here's how it will work:

==> The contest will run from April 6-30, 2004.

==> There can be multiple winners, any number.

==> To win, here's what you need to do. Convince your
friends and business associates to sign up for my BRAINY
Tidbits newsletter. Your friends should sign up here on my
website, confirm their subscription and then forward YOU
their confirming email which they receive from me when
they complete the sign-up procedure.

When 10 of your friends or associates have successfully
signed up and you have their confirmations, you send me an
email with their names and email addresses in it (one
email with all of this information written in the body of the
email). I will confirm that they are subscribers, and they
must continue to be subscribers until the winners are
notified.

[I hope they will continue after that, too!]

==> The person who signs up ***the most new*** BRAINY
Tidbits subscribers during the contest period will win a
F*REE copy of my two ebooks, MARKETING PLAN ESSENTIALS:
ONLINE & OFF and 52 READY-TO-GO SALES MEETINGS, plus one
hour of free consulting (via phone) with me.

==> Anyone who successfully signs up 10 or more new BRAINY
Tidbits subscribers during the contest period will win
their choice of ONE of ANY of my ebooks, special reports
or booklets. One prize per person EXCEPT for the big winner
as noted in the bullet just above this one.

==> Winners will be notified by email during May 2004.

==> As always, we value your privacy. We never rent, sell
or give your information to anyone.

==> Marketing Idea Shop is not responsible for lost
entries. If they are lost, we don't know about it, so we
can't fix it. If you have successfully subscribed 10 or
more new folks to the BRAINY list, followed the contest
instructions and you have NOT HEARD from me by June 1,
send me an email or call to check on your prize:
mailto:lcf@marketingideashop.com or 800-203-8660.


Okay? Ready. Get set. Go.

Have your friends and associates sign up in the subscriber box
on any of the pages of our website: http://www.marketingideashop.com


Note: You can find these same contest rules at
http://www.marketingideashop.com/contest.html


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3.   Mailbag Ideas

Last week in Brainy Tidbits, my lead article was about
using a website to promote your business and make sales. I
said, "A small-town restaurant, for instance, that depends
upon its customers to come to its eatery would use a
website as a traffic generator while a caterer might use
it to actually make sales and schedule jobs."

My friend Shel Horowitz, the king of frugal marketing,
responded:

Actually, Lois, I can think of a number of ways a
restaurant could sell directly from a website, with two
safeguards: a notice on the site that says if you don't
receive a confirmation message, your mail didn't go
through, and flashing/audio indicators at the hostess's
computer, requiring an "I've seen it" click.

A few examples:

==> Online reservations

==> Take-out ordering

==> Express service -- order 15 minutes ahead, and both
your food and your table are ready when you get there
(could even charge an extra fee for this)

==> Merchandise sales: cookbooks, apparel, sauces, etc.
(and that makes possible a non-geographical clientele)

==> Partnering with affiliate links to attractions and
hotels nearby -- or, for chain restaurants, to other
locations

==> Maintain online customer profiles: favorite foods,
preferences for preparation, dietary restrictions -- and
when you have a lobster special, e-mail all the patrons
whose favorite food is lobster

==> And of course, coupons, loyalty discounts, and special
offers


There's a wonderful article on Shel's site by Rick
Beneteau called "How Local Storefront Businesses Can 'Clean Up' On
the Web" -- it has many other ideas for local businesses
to benefit from a web presence.

Beneteau uses a dry cleaner as an example, and if it can
work for a dry cleaner, it's hard to imagine any retail
business that couldn't benefit. Find it in the "World Wide
Web Section" of "Down to Business" magazine,
http://www.frugalmarketing.com/dtb/dtb.shtml

Shel and I would like to challenge YOU, my Brainy Tidbits
readers, to improve on these ideas.

I'll include the best ones in next week's Brainy Tidbits
and Shel promises to put the best ones into an article for
his Monthly Frugal Marketing Tips, which is distributed to
6,000 subscribers. We'll both include website links and
brief descriptions of each responder, so you could get
double play here by sending in your ideas. What great PR!

Send your ideas to me at
mailto:editor@marketingideashop.com?subject=Use_Web

Do it now so you don't forget. :-)



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4.  Quote of the Week

Living and exercising your beliefs and values daily
without fear of loss, retribution or causing harm to others is the
definition of true freedom and thus, true success.


Meredith Hamilton
Expert Communications
http://www.expertcommunications.com


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AND NOW, A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSORS...


What's your definition of success? Email your comments to
me at
mailto:lcf@marketingideashop.com?subject=Success_Quote



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5.  PR & Networking Opportunities


==> April 8: Financial Decision-Making to
       Grow Your Business Seminar, Washington, DC

Thursday, April 8, 6-9 pm, National Women's Business
Center, Conn. & K Sts, NW ~ $50 members/$65 nonmembers. We
are located on Farragut Square (on the red, blue, and
orange lines). Please take the Metro - traffic is highly
congested. If you must drive, allow an extra 20 minutes to
your drive time to allow for congestion downtown. If you
drive, we recommend the garage at 1750 K (open until 10
PM, $5). For more information or to register, visit
http://www.womensbusinesscenter.org or contact Susan Kuhn
at mailto:skuhn@womensbusinesscenter.org or 202-785-4922.


==> April 13: Cost-Saving, Response-Boosting PR &
       Direct Marketing Secrets Teleseminar

Presented by low-cost marketing masters Shel Horowitz of
http://www.frugalmarketing.com and Sharron Senter of
http://www.sharronsenter.com , Tuesday, April 13, 1 pm
Eastern. This one-hour minicourse will give you concrete
techniques that will lower the cost and boost the
effectiveness of your marketing. Plus, you'll get a
handout listing all the resources as clickable links -- so you can
concentrate on the concepts. For more information, please
visit:

http://www.frugalmarketing.com/teleseminar.html


==> April 27: Small Business Procurement Expo
       Washington, DC

9-4:30 pm, Center for Association Leadership, Ronald
Reagan Building, Washington, DC. For more information or to
register, visit http://www.womensbusinesscenter.org or
contact Susan Kuhn at
mailto:skuhn@womensbusinesscenter.org
or 202-785-4922.


==> April 28: E-Learning Expo
       Pittsburgh, PA

Learn how to make e-learning work. How do you know when an
organization is ready for e-learning? Are you looking to
make more informed decisions about e-learning? The
Pittsburgh Chapter of the American Society for Training
and Development is hosting an E-Learning Expo on April 28,
2004 at the Radisson Hotel, Pittsburgh Green Tree. To find out
more or register, contact Rose Martin at
mailto:rosemartin584@msn.com or 412-215-3661.



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6. Resources for Entrepreneurs and Marketers

==> MULTIPLE STREAMS OF INTERNET INCOME by Robert G. Allen

In just 273 pages, you can learn the secrets of making
money on the Net. Click on the link and read some of the
book on the Amazon.com site. Then buy it and start making
money.

http://tinyurl.com/2z3wq


==> LOW-COST WEB SITE PROMOTION by Barry Feig

This book is filled with excellent ideas about promoting
your website and improving your search engine ranking.
When
you get to the Amazon page, scroll down and pick up this
book along with MAXIMIZE WEB SITE TRAFFIC by Robin Nobels
and Susan O'Neill and save on shipping.

http://tinyurl.com/2pspy


==> Wonder how I make those short links?

You can hide your affiliate links and make long web links
short, F*REE. Visit:

http://www.tinyurl.com


==> Online Customer Relationship Management

You can answer your customers' questions online in real
time with Human Click. Pricing is $99 per month and up.
According to their website, their online retail clients
experience a 35% increase in order size. F*REE
downloadable
software trial available and you can see how it works by
asking questions of the HumanClick service personnel.

http://www.humanclick.com/


==> Clipping Services

If you want to keep track of where your company (or your
competitor!) is mentioned in the news, you can do this
easily by hiring a clipping service. Here are a few
options
for you:

Eclip: http://www.eclip.com/
eWatch: http://www.ewatch.com/
Luce Press Clippings: http://www.burrellesluce.com/
Vocus: http://www.pressaccess.com/content/index.asp
Web Clipping: http://www.webclipping.com/


Do you like these resources? There are plenty more where
these came from in my ebook, BUSINESS SUCCESS SECRETS:
HARD-WORKING TACTICS & RESOURCES. Read more about it or
order it here:

http://www.marketingideashop.com/documents/bizsuccess.htm


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7.  A Little Fun - The Positive Spin


Thanks to Dick Cook at
http://www.norfolkwholesalefloral.com for these cute ones:


A reporter was interviewing a 104-year-old woman. "And
what
do you think is the best thing about being 104?" the
reporter asked.

She simply replied, "No peer pressure."


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The nice thing about being senile is you can hide your own
Easter eggs.


Help keep the smiles coming...please send me your
marketing, PR or sales jokes. I'll be happy to give you
credit and list your website! Email me:
mailto:lcf@marketingideashop.com?subject=marketing_joke


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8.  Smell the Coffee...

My dog Lulu is having the time of her life lately. A
couple months ago my husband bought me a bird feeder, which he
put up on our balcony. Don thought that because the balcony
was so high, the bird feeder would be safe from squirrels.
[Silly Hubby.]  I guess he forgot they can climb just
about anything and jump for *miles*.

Well, it didn't take the squirrels long to discover the
feeder...about a half a day longer than the birds.
Squirrels are observant but lazy little creatures. They
watch the birds and then follow them right to the food.

Lulu LOVES watching and chasing the squirrels, who pay her
no nevermind if she is safely in the house watching
through the window. In fact, sometimes she's even out on the
balcony and they creep along trying to get to the food.
That's because Lulu isn't quite as observant as squirrels.


My cat Abelgirk, on the other hand, IS observant and the
squirrels don't seem to like him very much. Luckily, so
far Abe isn't very interested in birds.

I wonder what the summer will bring when I keep the door
open, and my cat and dog can both go out on the balcony
freely?


Have a Happy Easter!


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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! There are f~ree articles, past copies
of Brainy Tidbits, resources, ebooks and special reports.
Remember, we are constantly adding brainy ideas and
information to the site for you.

http://www.marketingideashop.com



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THE FINE PRINT

© 2004 Marketing Idea Shop. All rights reserved.
This publication is registered with the
Library of Congress in Washington, DC.
ISSN 1545-035X


THANK YOU!
We appreciate your business.


PRIVACY STATEMENT/COPYRIGHT
We value your privacy. We will not distribute your email
address or personal information to anyone. Period.


PERMISSION TO REPRINT
You may reprint any items from "MarketingIdeaShop BRAINY
Tidbits" (except those with a copyright listed from
another source) in your own print or electronic newsletter. Please
be kind and send us a copy so we can see it in print.
Also, please include the following paragraph:

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."


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Published by:
Lois Carter Fay, APR
Founder, Marketing Idea Shop
411 Rainier Road, Massanutten, VA  USA 22840
Voice 540.289.3840 or 800.203.8660
mailto:lcf@marketingideashop.com
http://www.marketingideashop.com

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