Search Results for ‘marketing ideas’
National Skin Care Awareness Month – Time for a virtual holiday makeover. In 2008, Sephora, the beauty and skin care company launched a holiday makeover initiative at MistletoeMakeover.com where women (or daring men) could get a virtual holiday makeover using advanced photo-realistic technology to try out the season’s hottest holiday makeup trends and share with like-minded friends. “Mistletoe Makeover” was created by digital marketing firm, EVB San Francisco, in partnership with virtual makeover company, TAAZ.com. “Mistletoe Makeover” exploded online with hundreds of thousands of women creating holiday makeovers. Take a look at Reese Witherspoon’s makeover as Santa’s Little Temptress!!
For more holiday marketing ideas, see my book, Quirky Marketing ~ 365 Ways to Grow Your Business Using Zany and Non-traditional Holidays at www.QuirkyOffer.com. Free updates for 2010 when you purchase the current edition
September 14th, 2009
Have in common?
They all mark special ”celebrations” on the calendar. For instance September 13th is National Grandparent’s Day – acknowledge your favorite grandparents with flowers or volunteer for or create an adopt-a-grandparent association. Honor those who honor children (of all ages) in a special way. Have a grandparent’s day sale or special offering. Visit a nursing home or assisted living facility and read to or just talk to some of the residents.
September 13th is also Bald is Beautiful Day – if you are a barber you could host a “bald is beautiful contest” and have prizes for the roundest head, the shiniest head, the most interesting head … – In May 2001 Harrisburg Senators partnered with the American Cancer Society (ACS) for a special fundraiser at Commerce Bank Park. The Senators raised money for the ACS Hope Lodge in Hershey, a place where cancer patients and their families can stay free of charge while patients are receiving treatment at Hershey Medical Center. Bald is Beautiful Day consisted of players and employees offering to shave their heads if their fundraising goal is met.
September 13th is also Fortune Cookie Day – Give everyone a fortune cookie today – you can buy them at a Chinese restaurant or you can special order them online and include your own messages – go to http://www.fancyfortunecookies.com/ or www.goodfortunes.com to create yours or make your own with this recipe at http://www.redheadmarketingblog.com/fortune-cookie-recipe-for-business-success/.
September 13th is also International Chocolate Day – another great day to do a chocolate promotion – carry around gold chocolate coins wherever you go and hand them out with your business card (I use those glue dots to attach the chocolate to my business card and use this as another way to spread the word about my company in a delectable way. A chocolatiere in Florida makes chocolate coins and gives them to prospects wherever he goes, a great way to allow others to offer a sample and promote his business.
For more Weird Holiday Marketing Ideas check out Quirky Marketing ~ 365 Ways to Promote Your Business Using Zany & Non-traditional Holidays!
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September 13th, 2009
August 10th is Lego Day ~ Legos were invented by Godfred Kirk Christiansen (1954) in response to a need for toys that would challenge children to think. Legos comes from the word “Leg godt” which means “play well.”
Over the next 52+ years dozens of organizations have come up with ideas and events to create a world record for using the most legos, creating the largest construction and even the tallest towers. In fact, in 2006 the World record-smashing LEGO tower measures over 96 feet tall beat the former record by only 7 inches. The structure, built by hundreds of children in Vienna, created a whopping tower of LEGO measuring 96.7 feet. In fact, The new tower is so tall, the children assembled the structure in pieces before adults lifted each section to the pinnacle by a crane.
~ Read the whole story here: http://dvice.com/archives/2008/10/world_recordsma.php.
What records have you attempted to “break” in your company, your community, your circle to gain attention of the media and promote your business?
Here’s some great Lego training ideas http://www.squarewheels.com/content/legotrdev.html
And be sure to check out LEGO SERIOUS PLAY ~ an innovative, experiential process
designed to enhance innovation and business performance here: http://www.seriousplay.com/
August 10th, 2009
Tired of spending all your money on advertising and marketing that just doesn’t work? Here are 10 cheap ideas to grow your business without breaking the bank!
1) Market to Former Customers and Clients. It costs less than marketing to new customers. Make them an offer they can’t refuse, such AS $5 off their next purchase.
2) Join Associations, professional organizations, and civic and charitable clubs. Get involved and become a leader. You’ll make great contacts that can lead to future business. Also, thank new members who join your organization by offering them a coupon or sending them a postcard for a discount or something free.
3) Reward Repeat Customers. Offer a frequent-purchase card to track their spending.
4) Use Coupons to enhance your sales. Give them a reason to TRY your business.
5) Follow the Rule of Three:
*Forget cold calls. Make three warm calls a day to prospects whom others have referred to you.
*Collect at least three business cards a day.
*Send at least three notes each day to people thanking them for their business or something they did to help your business grow.
6) Encourage Word of Mouth from Your Family, Friends and Associates. Your best advocates will be those who already know you and like you. Encourage them to tell others about your products and services. Sometimes they just need the nudge to get started. And then reward them for doing so.
7) Send press releases prior to having an event or a contest or write articles for publications in your industry.
8) Create and send a newsletter or e-zine (newsletter sent via e-mail) to your customers to keep your business at the top of their minds. Include tips on flower care, positive news events, specials, discounts and coupons.
9) Give Stellar Service with a 100-percent, no-questions-asked, money-back guarantee. It will give your customers a sense of ease in doing business with you and build their trust.
10) Partner with Other Companies to promote your business. Find companies with similar customer demographics that are not in competition with your business and create ways to joint venture with them either on a one-time, long-term or event-by-event basis.
For more tips like these check out Rose Marketing on a Daisy Budget: How to Grow Your Business Without Spending a Fortune by Heidi Richards Mooney
July 27th, 2009
– Bastille Day is the French national holiday, celebrated on 14 July each year. In France, it is called Fête Nationale (”National Celebration”) the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille fortress-prison was seen as a symbol of the uprising of the modern nation, and of the reconciliation of all the French inside the constitutional monarchy which preceded the First Republic, during the French Revolution. (Source Wikipedia).
Today is Bastille Day
In honor of Bastille Day I thought it would be fun to showcase an event the *American Cancer Society hosts ever year called Jail & Bail.
Jail & Bail is an annual fundraising event that brings together community leaders and ordinary citizens for a common cause… to help fight Cancer!
Jo Walters, David Singer, Sabrina Singer and Marilee Maddox
For many years I was an active participant in Jail & Bail, serving as a Parole Board Member AND a Jailbird!
This year, the American Cancer Society’s annual Jail and Bail event, held recently at the Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Airport Hotel in Dania Beach, raised more than $150,000.
Here’s how it works: The fundraiser has community members “arrested” by local law enforcement officers and brought to the mock jail. While in custody, these “jailbirds” have unlimited use of a telephone to call friends, relatives, co-workers, business associates, etc…, to raise the bail in pledges to the American Cancer Society. The bail is determined by a “judge” at the “jail”. And, all donations are fully tax deductible contributions to the American Cancer Society.
The local ACS sends media releases with Parole board members names and companies and also provides volunteers with their own press release Template to send out to their own media contacts. This is also a great way to stay top of mind in the media when they are looking for a story or resource.
One of my good friends David Singer (an attorney in Hollywood, Florida) has been the local Jail & Bail chairperson for years. And he and his law firm have received prestigious placement in all the major media outlets in the tri-county area including print, radio AND TV. He works tirelessly to recruit Parole Board members who in turn find people to “arrest.”
And it’s a fun event.
What does Jail & Bail have to do with Marketing? It’s called Cause-related marketing. Whenever businesses support a cause that has potential to reach a lot of people in the community, it helps them not only create goodwill in the community, it often will gain incredible media attention. And that’s the kind of attention most businesses want. Because we don’t have to pay for it and we can feel good about giving back. As a “sponsor” you get visibility on marketing materials, mentioned during planning meetings and in media releases and much more. As a participant you get to work closely with other like-minded volunteers AND maybe even see YOUR name in the media.
Here are 5 tips to help you plan and execute a successful Cause-related Marketing Campaign:
1. Find a cause you can get your arms around. Something that feeds your soul AND does good in the community. You will find it more worthwhile and you will be able to relate better to the people who also believe in the cause – the volunteers, staff and supporters. Organizations are also looking for partners with similar agendas, those who can achieve their goals by partnering with the right businesses and individuals in the first place.
2. Set realistic, measurable goals for your program. Like any other marketing plan, you need to know what outcomes you hope to get from your participation. Include how you will achieve those goals.
3. Create a “partnership agreement” that both parties understand and agree to. A clearly defined agreement will include both “partners” obligations, rights and expectations. Remember this is like any other partnership and if you can add a little formality to it, then the chances of success increase and it creates a sense of comfort knowing in black and white what each partners responsibilities include.
4. Be an ambassador for your Cause. Let everyone in your own circle know what and how you are supporting the organization. You will be pleasantly surprised by how many people will give you a thumbs up and also will want to “help you in your cause.”
5. When all is said and done, do a thorough review to make sure the campaign met your goals, your needs and the expectations of all concerned. Remember that while you want to support a cause you believe in, the bottom line is your support should create awareness of, interest in and customers for your company.
So next time you are trying to decide what community event to support, look at your calendar and see what’s going on and find a local charity to align yourself with. And then let me know what you did. Maybe your story will end up in the next edition of Quirky Marketing ~ 365 Ways to Promote Your Business Using Zany and Non-traditional Holidays.
*The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide community-based voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem—by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer— through research, education, advocacy and service.
Grab a FREE copy of my ebook: GET MEDIA SAVVY!– The Ultimate eGuide to Promote Your Products, Services and Ideas to the World at: http://www.womensmediasummit.com/get-media-savvy/
July 14th, 2009
Gifts From the Garden Month - People like to do business with people whom they have a relationship. They tend to trust people they meet outside of the business setting. So how about it? Do you network in line at the grocery store? Do you take every opportunity to meet people and listen to their problems so that you can offer a solution?
Here’s what my good friend Bea Kunz of Sage Hill Farms and Vintage Store does: “I have two sets of business cards, one is my regular website with product for sale. The other is a card inviting you to join us for a introduction to “cooking with herbs.” This is the card I hand out to those I meet in grocery stores and other places where we are both strangers. I pay attention to what others are putting in their carts, this gives me an opening to a conversation. I can access the areas people might want or need help in by seeing what types of food they buy. I’m also aware that many are a bit sensitive to having a stranger or anyone interject their ideas on their choices. When offered something that is fun and free, it’s much easier to then introduce them to something better. Sage Hill Farms has gained more than a few small accounts just through this medium. Small accounts make large accounts when tallied up at the end of the month!”
Excerpt from the book “Quirky Marketing ~ 365 Ways to Promote Your Business Using Zany & Non-traditional Holidays (the original holiday marketing guide) ~ www.QuirkyOffer.com
May 2nd, 2009
April 22nd is also National Jelly Bean Day – On October 15, 1999, the world’s largest jar of jelly beans was unveiled. It weighed 6,050 pounds. Did you know that each year, U.S. manufacturers produce more than 16 billion jelly beans for Easter — that’s enough to completely fill a plastic Easter egg 89 feet high and 60 feet wide (about the height of a nine-story office building.
Time for another “world’s largest jar of jelly beans?
BTW, I am giving a presentation to the American Business Women’s Association called Leveraging Social Networking to Grow Your Business. During the event I am having a “Guess the Jelly Beans” contest and will announce the winner at the end of the program. Someone will go home with a free copy of my Social Networking Formula for Success CD (value $47). And everyone will get a handful of Jelly Beans too!
Read the History of Jelly Beans at Xomba.com
Take this Jelly Bean Quiz
For more great ideas like these, check out Quirky Marketing ~ 365 Ways to Promote Your Business Using Zany and non-traditional Holidays.
April 21st, 2009
They each celebrate April 22nd!
April 22nd is Earth Day - In celebration of Earth Day 2008, WE magazine hosted a Green Commerce Survey and invited women and men all over the world to participate. For their time, WE gathered more than 100 resources to share with them as a special gift. WE magazine also focused their entire Spring 2008 Issue on Going Green issues. You can read it here: http://www.wecai.org/wemagspring08.pdf . Here is the list of Green Resources we compiled from the survey: http://www.speakingwithspirit.com/pdf/WOMENSGREENRESOURCES.pdf.
April 21st, 2009
Today April 16th is Guitar Picker’s Day
Invented by the people of Malaga, Spain in the 15th century The first guitars were very small and strung with four pair of strings. Each pair was called a course. As the guitar later changed into a larger instrument, this “four course” guitar became known as the ukulele. During the Renaissance the guitar was not taken seriously as a musical instrument, because the lute was the intrument of choice by musicians of that day.
Can you name a famous guitar player? How about George Harrison, lead guitarist for the Beatles or Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones. There’s also Carlos Santana and of course who could forget Elvis Presley…..
If you are in the music business you could host a “world’s largest guitar concert” in the world. Call your local musicians union to contact guitarists. Go to local night clubs, lounges and of course look in the phone book and even Google local guitar players to get your band on… Contact other local music outlets to co-sponsor your event.
If you want to learn more about guitars visit Josh’s Guitar Lifestyle blog
Find your favorite Guitarists at Guitar 5 Day
Check out these great guitar trivia quiz’s at Fun Trivia
For more great ideas like these, check out Quirky Marketing ~ 365 Ways to Promote Your Business Using Zany and non-traditional Holidays.
April 16th, 2009
April 16 is Panda Day
Panda Express, a leading Chinese quick service chain (with 1000+ locations) created their own panda campaign to launch a new addition to their menu. Here’s what they did: they sent a plain white box containing two plush pandas named Tom-Tom and Eddie to select marketing restaurant and marketing trade media editors to roll out their Beijing Beef advertising campaign. They followed up the mailing with an email campaign explaining the chain was “stirring up pandemonium” with its new dish. The results? Mentions and full spread articles in several of these publications, far exceeding Panda Express’ expectations.
What type of marketing ideas could you come up with to promote your business during Panda Day?
April 16th, 2009
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