Not Your Usual Marketing Tips

Resolute About Resolutions

2012-01-02T17:59:00.000-05:00

Volume 10, Number 1.

A new year for us all, and the tenth year of my musings on the general subject of marketing communications and its many permutations.

Each January, it's been our tradition to offer up 12 resolutions -- one corresponding to each month -- for the New Year. For those of you who missed it last year, here we go again. For those of you who read it last year...here we go again.

Welcome to the Let's-Hope-The-Mayans-Are-Wrong Opus of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Here are 12 initiatives you can apply to your marketing plan this new year.

In no particular order:

1. Guerilla Marketing: Think outside the box for ways to promote yourself. There are rules…and sometimes they're made to be broken.

2. Networking: Don't just focus on the standard business networking group. Look into joining associations, fraternal organizations, MeetUps, groups comprising fellow hobbyists, etc. That means getting more active in the social media milieu, as well, i.e. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, et al.

3. Publicity: You're probably too close to see the forest for the trees. In other words, just because you may think you have nothing new to tell the world...doesn't mean you don't.

4. Volunteer Programs: Join an organization to help a favored cause. It's good networking, along with it being "good works."

5. Seminars: You think you know it all? Heck, maybe you do – at least as far as certain audiences are concerned, and the new business development opportunities they might provide for you.

6. Newsletters: Share your ideas, broaden your constituency by sending out industry-relevant information either as hard copy…or as an e-zine (such as what you’re presently reading).

7. Trade Shows: Go to them, be in them, network within them, write a program article for them, propose to give a seminar at them.

8. Event Marketing: Sponsor a cause, host an Open House; it’s good P.R. by “socializing” your business.

9. The Newspaper: Remember that old-fashioned medium? For business ideas, for client contact opportunities, for ways to promote yourself through Letters to the Editor...simply to stay topical...don’t just rely on the 11:00 PM news. Read the newspaper.

10. Greeting Cards: It doesn’t have to be Christmas to send them to clients, prospects, colleagues, friends. Stay top of mind year-round, with Valentine’s Day, July 4th, Arbor Day – whatever! – as your "excuse."

11. Postcards: Along with greeting cards, postcards are a fast, convenient, economical way to let people know about what's new with your business (think Realtors and Financial Advisor).

12. Re-tool Your Website: updated info, add new pictures, introduce a video, sponsor a contest.

Have a happy, healthy and prosperous 2012. Hope to catch you again the first Tuesday of next month with another perspective during our 10th Anniversary year.

(And if you want to buy me something, it should be in tin...)

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo,
NAWP, Visit Charlotte

Love-ing the Holidays

2011-12-05T15:16:00.001-05:00

The holidays are a time for gift giving and good cheer.

And so I thought I'd use the auspices of this column to step away from its customary charge to educate and inspire on matters marketing -- how presumptuous of me to begin with -- and, while lacking in gifts for you, at least spread some of that good cheer.

Welcome to the Winter Solstice edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Not wishing to come across as too treacly, I am still sufficiently bitten by the Holiday bug to where I'd like to put forth some thoughts on one particular kind of "gift."

This is lifted from a column that appeared in this space about five years ago. Enjoy:

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What does Love mean?

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of four-to-eight-year-olds. The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think:

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth."
Billy, age 4

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other."
Karl, age 5

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired."
Terri, age 4

Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen."
Bobby, age 7

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend who you hate."
Nikka, age 6

"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well."
Tommy, age 6

"During my piano recital, I was on a stage and I was scared. I looked at all the people watching me and saw my daddy waving and smiling. He was the only one doing that. I wasn't scared anymore."
Cindy, age 8

"My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night."
Clare, age 6

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day."
Mary Ann, age 4

"When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you."
Karen, age 7

"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget."
Jessica, age 8

Finally, author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia recalls a contest he was asked to judge, the purpose of which was to find "the most caring child."

The winner was a four year old whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.

Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there.

When his Mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, "Nothing, I just helped him cry."

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On second thought, maybe there was a gift or two in there...

Happy Holidays, and a prosperous and healthy New Year to you and yours.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo,
NAWP, Visit Charlotte

Drawn to Caricatures

2011-10-31T23:00:00.001-04:00

Allow me to indulge myself and present the case for marrying two passions of mine: marketing's creative side...and caricature art.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

(If you were not otherwise aware, Yes, I do caricatures. And I’ve been doing them professionally – apart from my copywriting, conceptual and marketing strategy work – for over three decades now.)

In recent weeks, my capabilities as a professional caricature artist have been engaged by three different clients, all of whom have sought caricature art as a unique, fun embellishment to enhance their messages to their respective marketplaces.

One is using caricatures, or in this case "straight" cartoons, to create a "Provide the Caption" addition to her national B-to-B blog; another client is using my cartoons to add visual emphasis to his sales training management seminar/workshop reminders; the third individual wants his business to stand out by incorporating his caricature visage to snail mail notes...and a self-published book cover.

Naturally, caricatures can be applied to other marketing avenues, such as ad specialty items -- on tee shirts, coffee mugs, and the like. Caricatures can enliven collateral marketing materials, ad campaigns, publicity packages, PowerPoint presentations and trade shows as well.

Social media anyone? I can count at least five individuals (that I know of) who have used my caricatures of themselves as their personal avatars on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Soon it will be holiday gift-giving time. You can do the fruitcake thing, the gift basket thing, the popcorn-in-a-tin thing or the gift certificate thing. Or you might want to consider giving a gift that is truly customized and personal...

Caricatures make a uniquely original and thoughtful gift for your clients or your favored customers...and certainly families and friends on the personal side. Caricatures of loyal (and long-standing) staff make great gifts as well, showing your appreciation for their dedicated service. Yours truly has done caricatures of individual staff members, framed and mounted on company walls. So it’s not only a unique, fun idea…it’s great for morale.

Another popular means by which to utilize caricatures -- and no less a marketing tool than a corporate brochure or flyer -- is a Holiday Greetings card...customized to feature the illustrated likenesses of company officers and selected staff, and sent out to clients with a seasonal message thanking them for their business. See art, above.

And to see samples of other art I've done -- business and personal -- please check out my caricatures website, http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/caricaturesbyjoel/

So...want to consider introducing a 500-year-old art form to 21st Century marketing sensibilities?

Give a thought to caricatures. And in the meantime, frame the first Tuesday of next month for another artful sampling of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo,
NAWP, Visit Charlotte

Make October YOUR Month!

2011-10-04T14:47:00.000-04:00

October is Halloween month, right?

And then there's New Year January, the Ides of March, the Merry Month of May, The 4th of July, Thanksgiving November, Christmas December...

Well, if you're into promoting your business through PR tactics -- whether retail, service, B-to-B, B-to-C -- you might wish to re-think October. Or any month for that matter.

Welcome to the Season of the Witch edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

It's a very popular, and tried and true approach, to associate one's business with a particular month. This is perfectly fine. Along with usually being perfectly obvious.

How about stepping outside the box, and bringing a less-observed date into the marketing mix?

Not only do you show to your clients and prospects a broader base of cultural reference, but you get the opportunity to uniquely and memorably make your selected date...your own.

Did you realize October alone offers these unique marketing tie-in dates?

• Adopt-A-Shelter-Dog Month

• Animal Safety and Protection Month

• Augmentative and Alternative Communication Awareness Month

• Bake and Decorate Month

• Bat Appreciation Month

• Breast Cancer Awareness Month

• Car Care Month

• Celebrating the Bilingual Child Month

• Celiac Disease Awareness Month

• Children's Magazine Month

• Chili Month

• Chiropractic Month

• Church Library Month

• Co-op Awareness Month

• Crime Prevention Month

• Cyber Security Awareness Month

• Dental Hygiene Month

• Depression Education and Awareness Month

• Disability Employment Awareness Month

• Domestic Violence Awareness Month

• Down Syndrome Awareness Month

• Dyslexia Awareness Month

• Eat Better, Eat Together Month

• Emotional Intelligence Awareness Month

• Emotional Wellness Month

• Financial Planning Month

• German-American Heritage Month

• Global Diversity Awareness Month

• Go Hog Wild--Eat Country Ham Month

• Go on a Field Trip Month

• Halloween Safety Month

• Health Literacy Month

• Liver Awareness Month

• Long-Term Care Planning Month

• Medical Librarians Month

• Organize Your Medical Information Month

• Orthodontic Health Month

• Photographer Appreciation Month

• Physical Therapy Month

• Polish-American Heritage Month

• Popcorn Poppin' Month

• Positive Attitude Month

• Protect Your Hearing Month

• Raptor Month

• Reading Group Month

• Rett Syndrome Awareness Month

So go ahead, grab a date and make it your own. It's free!

What else is free? The first Tuesday of next month's installment of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo,
NAWP, Visit Charlotte

Information Overload

2011-09-06T00:19:00.001-04:00

Are you suffering the slings and arrows of outrageous information overload?

I feel your pain. And I'm not nearly as hooked up to all the social media and communications outlets as I either could be or should be.

We're not even talking about getting around to performing the job we are charged with doing to assist our client...or even to market ourselves.

It doesn't help, either, that after we've first checked Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn -- probably before breakfast -- for whatever "news" is being disseminated, we tend to stick around...just...a...little...longer to see what this buddy has to say about the game or what that girlfriend plans to wear to a party tonight.

Welcome to the September issue of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

CMSWire is an online magazine dedicated to all things content management; its audience comprises "CIOs, technologists, decision makers, vendors and analysts with a focus on information management practices, content, document and asset management technologies, web publishing, enterprise collaboration and a dash of social media."

Well, Chelsi Nakano, one of their writers, has a thing or two to say regarding that "dash:"

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Information overload is hazardous to your organization.

A recent webcast hosted by Dow Jones, a leader in news and business information, and BrightTalk, a venue for online events for professionals and their communities, aimed to help us effectively fight information overload.

Here’s what we learned about the perils of information overload:

• A minimum of 28 billion hours is lost each year to information overload in the United States.

• Reading and processing just 10 email messages can occupy over half of a worker’s day.

• It takes 5 minutes to get back on track after a 30-second interruption.

• 66% of knowledge workers feel that they don’t have enough time to complete their work.

• For every 100 people who are unnecessarily copied on an email, 8 hours are lost.

To keep from contributing to information overload, here a few helpful tips we gathered:

• Prioritize Your Workflow: Create thoughtful workflows that help workers make more intentional, mindful decisions about how they engage and collaborate.

• Practice Mindfulness: Whether it’s reading e-mail messages more carefully before they are sent or maintaining an accurate status on your instant messaging client, simple tasks can make a big difference.

• Advance Your Search: Use a variety of search engines and tools to help collect relevant and accurate content. Using advanced search options also makes us more mindful of how we search, which can save time.

• Pursue Fresh Perspectives: It seems counterintuitive, but engaging with others to discuss solutions for information overload can help. Fresh perspectives can offer advice.

Information will not go away anytime soon. Rather than being buried by it, we can stand up and decide to manage our time and information more effectively.

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So, boys and girls, what have we learned and what are we going to do the first Tuesday of next month? We shall disregard all our e-mail that day and read only the next installment of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips...

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo,
NAWP, Visit Charlotte

Video Saved the Marketing Star

2011-08-02T07:20:00.001-04:00

Thirty years ago, virtually to the day, a British New wave rock group called The Buggles, became pioneers when what turned out to be their one-hit wonder -- "Video Killed the Radio Star" -- became the very first music video shown on MTV.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iwuy4hHO3YQ

But if video killed the radio star, it's positively life affirming to marketers these days.

Welcome to the August edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

"Video" is from the Latin verb videre, which means "to see."

I have a client who demonstrably asserts that the video intro she has embedded in her e-mail signature and on her website has been a significant asset in promoting her business and her brand.

I have another client who enthusiastically utilizes this medium to showcase his brief talks and webinars.

Those of you already engaging in video activities (no, not the Tommie Lee or Rob Lowe variety..) needn't be reminded of this medium's far-reaching effectiveness.

To enjoy it passively as well, there is an online service that links you, free, to webinars and related broadcasts that can provide a treasure trove of information on all kinds of subjects.

BrightTALK, according to its website description, "provides online events for professionals and their communities. Every day thousands of thought leaders are actively sharing their insights, their ideas and their most up-to-date knowledge with professionals all over the globe through the online event technologies that BrightTALK has created.

"At BrightTALK, we believe that people learn the most when they hear directly from those who know the subject best. We also believe that this experience is enhanced through a dialog between speakers and the audience. Our online event tools offer a dynamic environment for everyone involved. It is the interactions we witness and the advancement of knowledge in our online communities that excites us the most.

"You can join BrightTALK’s vibrant exchange of ideas as either a viewer or a presenter. We offer viewers live, interactive access to businesses’ top thought leaders. You identify the topics most relevant to you by searching communities, channels, summits or individual webcasts and are introduced to new experts via their timely and relevant presentations. Your comments, your ideas, and your voice will not only influence how others think, but can shape future events available for your viewing and participation on BrightTALK. In addition, webcasts are available on-demand for future viewing and for sharing with your peers and colleagues. "

Since I subscribe, here's a recent e-mail I received:

Dear Joel

Last week on your subscribed channels:

Webcast: Jul 26 2011 1:00 pm Elevating Digital Measurement Beyond Last Click and Towards Return

Channel: Media and Marketing

Attend: http://www.brighttalk.com/webcast/43/30337
Webcast: Jul 27 2011 1:30 pm The New Way to B2B Marketing

Channel: Media and Marketing

Attend: http://www.brighttalk.com/webcast/43/31957

Webcast: Jul 28 2011 12:00 pm Lead Nurturing: Automating the Buyer's Journey

Channel: Media and Marketing

Attend: http://www.brighttalk.com/webcast/43/31309

Subscribe to additional channels that interest you:

http://www.brighttalk.com/mybrighttalk

Thank you.

Want to run your own online events? Click here to set up a free BrightTALK trial.

Cool, huh?

Join us again the first Tuesday of next month for a non-display resolution/aspect-ratio version of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo,
NAWP, Visit Charlotte

A Summer Fable

2011-07-05T16:21:00.000-04:00

Summertime is time for getting into a good, juicy novel. A romance, spy thriller, political drama, sci-fi...the kind that's called a real "page-turner." The ones that often grab you come with plot twists that challenge our ability to figure out whodunit, how and why.

This little fable made its way into this space sometime ago and I thought I'd share it once again…

Welcome to the July issue of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications.

Many years ago in a small European village, a merchant had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to a moneylender. The moneylender fancied the merchant's beautiful daughter so he proposed a bargain: He would forgo the merchant's debt if he could marry the merchant's daughter. The merchant and his daughter were horrified by the proposal. The cunning moneylender suggested that they let Providence decide the matter.

The moneylender told them that he would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty bag. The girl would then have to pick one pebble from the bag. If she picked the black pebble, she would become the moneylender's wife and her father's debt would be forgiven. If she picked the white pebble she need not marry him and her father's debt would still be forgiven. But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown into jail.

The moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles from the ground. But the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick her pebble from the bag.

What would you have done if you were the girl? If you had to advise her, what would you have told her? Initial analysis would produce three possibilities:

1. The girl should refuse to take a pebble.

2. The girl should show that there were two black pebbles in the bag and expose the moneylender as a cheat.

3. The girl should pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment.

Ah, but here’s what she did: She put her hand into the bag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost among all the other pebbles.

"Oh, how clumsy of me," she said. "But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which pebble I picked."

Since the remaining pebble is black, it must be assumed that she had picked the white one. And since the moneylender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.

MORAL OF THE STORY: Most problems do have a solution; sometimes we just have to think about them in a different way.

In marketing, as well, there may be all kinds of problems that tax our abilities to solve them -- usually the most vexing is the budget, or lack thereof.

Is the answer relatively budget-free social media to handle a project alone, or is there some combination with conventional media that should always be considered...Is there a useful role a company's staff can fulfill beyond that of a marketing hired hand to help move a product...What about relationship building with the media...Onsite relationship building with clients and customers...?

What different ways have you thought of to arrive at your marketing solutions?

See you again the first Tuesday of next month for another page turning (page scrolling?) edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo,
NAWP, Visit Charlotte

Is The Social Medium the Message?

2011-05-31T11:31:00.000-04:00

I'm on Facebook but I'm not on Twitter. I'm on Plaxo but I'm not on Foursquare. I'm on LinkedIn but I don't Flikr. Yet. I've been asked to join Referral Key and Ace of Sales, but I'm not sure what distinguishes them from other variations on those themes.

We're merely on the cusp of the social media revolution and already my head is spinning.

Welcome to the Summer Solstice edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

And as a hot summer day is wont to do to me, I'm starting to stroke from all the virtual means there are -- with surely more on the way -- to help "connect" me with my social and professional brethren. (And sisteren...or is that cistern? Never mind, that vessel has sailed...)

We all gotta do it to remain viable in the business world, though, right?

It's when these online and electronic outlets are touted as the only ways to achieve meaningful connectivity with our markets that we perhaps lose sight of more universal "truths."

Peter Shankman is the founder and Editor of HARO, about which I've written in the past -- "Help A Reporter Out," which offers subjects for both print and e-media for folks like you and me to contribute our expertise to -- but now he's weighing in on why "I Will Never Hire a Social Media Expert, and Neither Should You." This is excerpted from his blog, http://shankman.com/i-will-never-hire-a-social-media-expert-and-neither-should-you/ :

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I was going to call this article “All “Social Media Experts” need to go die in a fire,” but I figured I should be nicer than that.

Being an expert in Social Media is like being an expert at taking the bread out of the refrigerator. You might be the best bread-taker-outer in the world, but you know what? The goal is to make an amazing sandwich, and you can’t do that if all you’ve done in your life is taken the bread out of the fridge.

Social Media is just another facet of marketing and customer service. Say it with me. Repeat it until you know it by heart. Bind it as a sign upon your hands and upon thy gates. Social Media, by itself, will not help you.

“It’s not about building a website anymore! It’s so much cooler! It’s about Facebook, and fans, and followers, and engagement, and influence, and…”

Will you please shut up before you make me vomit on your shoes?

IT’S ABOUT GENERATING REVENUE THROUGH SOLID MARKETING AND STELLAR CUSTOMER SERVICE, JUST LIKE IT’S BEEN SINCE THE BEGINNING OF TIME.

It’s About Transparency. It’s about not lying to your customers, and thinking that a good Twitter apology will suffice when you’re caught. It won’t, and you’ll lose. Customers will run away in droves, because they can. They can go wherever they want now – It doesn’t matter how loyal they were in the past. Lie to them and get caught, and say goodbye. It’s about using the tools to market to an audience that wants to help tell your story, because you’ve been awesome at providing them with the service they deserve.

It’s About Relevance. It’s not about tweeting every single time your company offers 10% off on a thingamabob. It’s about finding out where your customers actually are, and going after them there. If you’re tweeting all your discounts, and none of your customers are on Twitter, then you sir, are an idiot. Marketing involves knowing your audience, and tailoring your promotions in specific bursts to the correct segments. “Social media experts” don’t know this. They’ll build you a fan page, and when all that work doesn’t convert into new sales, they’ll simply say “Well, we’ll just post more.” Don’t be that guy. Real marketers know when to market using traditional methods, social media, or even word of mouth. Go ahead. Ask a “social media expert” what a traffic planner does at an agency, then laugh as they quickly ask Google for help finding the answer.

It’s About Brevity. You know what the majority of people calling themselves “Social Media Experts” can’t do, among other things? THEY CAN’T WRITE. The number of “experts” out there who can’t string a simple sentence together astounds me. Guess what – If we have about three seconds to get our message across to a new customer, you know what’s going to do it? Not Twitter Followers. Not Facebook Fans. Not Foursquare Check-ins – NO. What’s going to do it is GOOD WRITING, END OF STORY. BAD WRITING IS KILLING AMERICA. Good writing is brevity, and brevity is marketing. Want to lose me as a customer, forever, guaranteed? Have a grammar error on any form of outward communication.

Finally, it’s about knowing your customer, and making sure your customer thinks of you first. When Barry Diller was running Paramount, he’d call ten people in his Rolodex each morning, just to say hi. That translated into all of Hollywood knowing this previously unknown executive’s name, because he took the time to reach out and communicate. It also translated into Paramount making billions in a time where other movie companies were struggling. Do you know your audience? Have you reached out to them? I’m not talking about “tweeting at them,” I’m talking about actually reaching out. Asking them what you can do better? Asking those who haven’t been around in a while what you can do to get them back? It’s not about 10% off coupons or “contests for the next follower.” For God’s sake, be smarter than that.

Social media is not “cool.” MAKING MONEY IS COOL. Social Media is simply another arrow in the quiver of marketing, and that quiver is designed to GENERATE REVENUE.

If you’re doing anything else with social media, here’s a book of matches, and I expect to never see you again after the smoke clears.

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Whew. And I thought I had the market on rants...

Join us again the first Tuesday of next month when we Morse-code you another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo,
ISES, NAWP, Visit Charlotte

Why, and How to, Write a Book

2011-05-03T01:17:00.003-04:00

Quick, what's faster than a speeding press release, more powerful than a rushing web site, able to leap social media in a single bound?

Look, up on your bookshelf -- it's a bird, it's a plane (Hey, I said look on your bookshelf..!)

It's a book.

Welcome to the un-bound edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Savvy marketers are realizing that, along with the conventional tools of the promoting trade -- web site, brochure, ads, commercials, a social media presence -- a good old fashioned tome can speak...pardon the pun...volumes about what one can offer in the way of expertise. While adding cachet to one's professional status that is virtually incalculable.

And that's whether the book is published through a literary press, or downloaded from a web presence.

There's a book in pretty much each one of us.

But rather than have me tell you about it -- I got Hooked on Phonics only last Thursday -- I thought I'd leave the real muscle to my friend, a former high school classmate of mine (who also lives in Charlotte), now a successful writer and author.

Jonathan Singer began his career at CBS in New York as a copywriter. He moved to Charlotte in 1988 where he has been a creative director and a ghostwriter (How Sweet the Sound, the autobiography of Cissy Houston, Whitney’s mother, Doubleday, 1998) and an occasional contributor to Charlotte magazine. He considers Joel Kweskin a friend – this week. He can be reached at singer.jonathan@gmail.com.

Nothing Beats a Book

If you really want to do something for yourself, write a book. Nothing else compares with the impact, the instant credibility, the authority that a book conveys.

A good book can suddenly get you speaking engagements, and free publicity. It can also leverage you well beyond your current station where a whole new demographic of clients graze.

I can’t tell you how to sit down Friday night and have a finished book by Monday morning. What I can show you is a way to avoid getting stuck – which is when most people quit.

Go out and buy four packs of ruled, 3 X 5 index cards. I’m embarrassed to promise that something so utilitarian will revolutionize your life as a writer. But it will. I know because it revolutionized mine.

Writing is about two things: structure and creativity. Most people think they can do both at once. You can’t.

Our brains do one thing and one thing well, at a time. The index cards give your brain a green light to brainstorm all the things you want to include in your book. Clear off a tabletop. Now write one idea, one thought per card, starting on the first ruled blue line. The temptation is to start writing the book on the cards. Don’t. You shouldn’t be using more than a couple lines to express that one thought; that one fact (garnered from your research); that one quote.

Spread out those cards on the tabletop, willy-nilly. For one particular book I did with under 20 chapters, each chapter had as many as 100 cards on the table.

When you’ve put all your ideas/facts/quotes on the cards start grouping them together by subject. Expect to have several groups. Give each group a one or two word title and write it in red on the top red line, extreme right.

Now, within each group, put the cards in some logical order. Record the order you’ve put them in by numbering them at the top of the card, on the red line, extreme left.

Arrange the cards vertically like venetian blinds with just enough to show what you’ve written on each card. Paper clip the sides of three or four cards together in that position, keeping the whole row of cards in a neat vertical. From the first card to the last, you ought to be able to scan what you’ve written easily from bottom to top.

Continue this process until you have as many separate vertical rows as your narrative warrants.

By this time you should see some natural transitions between the end of one row and the beginning of another. Arrange the rows in some logical order.

From your position above the table (work with as big a space as you can) if it’s a “chapter” you’re working on, then at a glance you ought to be able to see in the first row of cards the beginning of the chapter and in the last row of cards, the end of the chapter.

What you have on the table is the structure of your manuscript, logically progressing from one thought to the next. That in itself is a major accomplishment. But the real beauty of the cards is that now you don’t have to worry about what you’re going to say. It’s all right in front of you. You can, at a glance, see the beginning, the middle and the end.

An added bonus of seeing your material flow in so graphic a manner is that by keeping an eye on the end you will know how much time you can spend on the beginning and mid-section. That’s pacing!

You’ll never write yourself into a corner again. Writing one thought/fact/quote per card in no particular order allows your brain to spill everything you want to say – without having to make any association between the facts.

With all the “information” on the table that’s one less job your brain has to do. That frees you up to just look for the relationships between your thoughts and ideas – connections that may have never occurred to you.

Finally, once you’ve ordered and grouped the cards, then arranged those groups in a pleasing, logical order, you can breathe a sigh of relief. You’ve got a clear field ahead of you. You know exactly what you need to say and in what order. There’s no mystery. With all the facts in order at your fingertips, your brain is free to just be creative and write.

Try the cards. If all else fails, hire a ghostwriter.

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Join us again the first Tuesday of next month for another literati gliterati chapter of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo
ISES, NAWP, Visit Charlotte

"Hit'em Where They Ain't!"

2011-04-05T08:06:00.003-04:00

"If at first you don't succeed...try shortstop."
-- Soupy Sales

It's April, and that means my annual salute to The National Pastime. While professional football has clearly taken over as the country's premier team sport for its grasp on virtually all media and revenue (forgetting the current NFL strife between millionaire players and billionaire owners), there is still something about the influence Baseball has played for the last 141 years on the shaping of our country.

Curiously, it is the only game where, almost randomly, the defense controls the ball (or puck?). And it is the most democratic of all games -- anyone can be involved in a play at any time...and everyone gets to bat with an opportunity to score. With neither height or weight having a bearing on the player's role.

I don't know about you Dads out there, but I bought my toddler son a glove well before I ever bought him a football. And I still own two gloves. (They're from the Pleistocene Era, but we won't get into that now...)

Welcome to the "BATTER UP!" edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Jacques Barzun, a French-born American historian of ideas and culture, once famously said "Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball..."

And along with it, some lessons we can apply to, yes, marketing.

A few years ago, I first pitched this article to the readers of this column. Here's the replay:

There was a baseball player around the turn of the century -- at 5'4" the shortest ever to play the game -- named Wee Willie Keeler. Known for perfecting the "Baltimore Chop," whenever Willie stepped to the plate the chant would ring out, “Hit’em where they ain’t!”

The meaning was simplistically clear: hit the ball where the fielders weren't positioned, to improve the chances for getting a base hit.

What if, metaphorically speaking, you could “hit” your target markets…where your competition “ain’t?”

Most businesses – however small or large – tend to market themselves through the standard avenues…the local newspaper, the local weekly, radio, TV, et al. And buckshot mailings to one’s database of clients, colleagues and friends. (And now, of course, through various forms of social media.) Chances are that your industry counterparts are doing mostly that same thing.

Maybe the next time you’re “at bat,” consider going – pardon the pun – farther afield. That is, think about hitting those markets not just among your primary audience but also to the outer periphery of your spheres of influence.

¶A CPA, for instance – whose services are needed by virtually everyone – can make herself the go-to professional with the local remodelers trade association.

¶A chiropractor might consider offering internal clinics to the staffs of Home Depot or Lowe's (think of all the lifting, stretching and bending those folks go through).

¶An etiquette consultant might consider aligning with a business or life coach to offer services to further their clients' business growth and social success.

¶A sometime caricature artist might join a wedding and event planners organization to be their unique source of party entertainment. (Hey wait a minute, that's me..!)

For that matter, maybe there’s a hobby you have, or a weekend passion you love, that can be parlayed into a business opportunity -- by providing your services to fellow aficionados. Do these enthusiasts have associations? Do they have meetings? Do they have means, i.e. literature or promotional materials, by which they communicate with one another…and in which you can contribute an ad or, better yet, an informative article?

Again, something that perhaps your competition hasn't customarily done...

Next time you grab that metaphorical bat and stand in the box…you may want to think outside of it every now and then. And hit’em where they -- your competition -- likely ain’t.

By the way, did you know that, after "Happy Birthday," the second most sung ditty among Americans is..."Take Me Out to The Ballgame?"

See you again the first Tuesday of next month, with some "chin music" edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo
ISES, NAWP, Visit Charlotte

The Facebook Fenomenon

2011-03-01T11:32:00.000-05:00

Well, it didn't win Best Picture, or Best Actor or Best Director, but "The Social Network" certainly made its presence felt at the Academy Awards Sunday night earning three other Oscars, including Best Adapted Screenplay. More than anything else, though, it was the subject matter itself -- Facebook -- that will likely resonate long after "The King's Speech" has run its course in our collective conscience...notwithstanding the upcoming nuptials of Kate and William.

And that's because the latter is a fairy tale kingdom curiosity, while the former is virtually (and...virtually) part of our everyday lives.

Welcome to the Ide(a)s of March issue of Not Your Usual Marketing tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Facebook can be intoxicating, it can be exasperating, it can be enlightening, it can be depressing, it can be educational, and many hope it can be a boon to their business. Personally speaking, notwithstanding a project here or there that sprang onto my "wall," the jury is still out on the sustained efficacy of that perceived capability.

But at least in the case of one pundit out in the blogosphere, you better be there...or be square.

In One Social Media -- http://www.onesocialmedia.com/blog/ -- author Mike Bal opines on What Happens When You Don't Use Facebook?

"We talk to a lot of people who don’t think Facebook is necessary for their brand or company. What they don’t realize is that millions of people have come to rely on Facebook as their primary form of interaction with companies, brands, and people.

"What happens when someone can’t find you on Facebook? They give up and look for someone or something else to replace you. The hardest thing to do as a brand is to get people to trust you. Facebook makes taking that step a little easier for the customer. They can start by clicking the 'Like' button. From there they can interact with you and your page all the while developing a better relationship with your brand.

"Marketers have spent years trying to find the perfect customer. A customer who wants to hear what you have to say and who will spread the gospel of their favorite brand. Facebook offers a way for those customers or fans to find you and we would recommend taking advantage of it.

"Having a presence on Facebook doesn’t mean you are getting anything out of it. You have to be willing to maximize your efforts by creating strategies that get your customers and “fans” involved. By being valuable to those who choose to follow you, learn from you, be entertained by and informed by you.

"How are you being valuable to your customer base?"

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Like one point seven bajillion other people, I'm on Facebook. But, with pretty much strictly a business development intent, I'm still poking my stick out there to see how truly fertile this virtual landscape can be.

In the meantime, look for us the first Tuesday of next month for another red carpet treatment of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

Keep it Brief

2011-02-01T11:06:00.000-05:00

Now that we’re about to experience Super Bowl XLV, what’s next?

Why, JDK Marketing Communications Management XV, that’s what!

Five years ago in this column, I acknowledged -- duh! -- Anniversary X. Here's a reprise of that column, amended slightly to bring some points up to date.

Welcome to the February edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

February 14, Valentine’s Day, marks the fifteenth anniversary of JDK Marketing Communications Management. In this span of time, we’ve been fortunate to expand our client industry representation to nearly 50 different and varied companies while broadening our capabilities to some 23 “ways...to help bring business your way.”

Thank you's are in order to: my "stable" of fine creative talents (i.e. graphic designers, photographers, videographers, web developers) and commercial printer resources; business colleagues for their friendship, counsel and referrals; and, of course, to my clients who have given me the opportunity to not only make them look good, but me as well. You are all among my readers here and I appreciate your efforts in my behalf.

There, I’ve said what I wanted to…and kept it reasonably short.

Since I've been occasionally chided for being too wordy in some of my NYUM Tips, I’m trying to be more mindful of that particular proclivity. (Though obviously not enough, you see, to resist alliterative turns of phrase.)

But the point to be brief and concise is, generally, well advised.
As marketing guru Robert Middleton -- http://www.actionplan.com/ -- points out:

“Since all marketing is about communication, the faster you can get your message across, the better results you'll typically get...

”Some places you can use the short message technique:

”1. On the home page of your web site. People want to be able to glance at this one page, read a few words and know what you're about. You need to go beyond a few bullet points, but you don't need several long paragraphs outlining every single thing your business offers.

”2. In an email that points to more detailed information on a web page. In tests I've done, a message that was only 84 words got 50% more click-throughs than a message that was 284 words.

”3. In an Audio Logo. A concise statement in ten words or less saying who you work with and the problems you address will almost always generate more interest than a long-winded description of what you do, who you do it for and how you're different.

”4. In a phone message left on voice mail. Saying your name, company name and your phone number will generally get more return calls that a big recorded sales spiel that often convinces your prospect that they definitely don't need your services.

”5. In an answer to the question: ‘Tell me more about your services,’ it's better to tell a little and then ask a question than it is to give an itemized list of every service you offer.”

…And I think I’ll end it right here, before I’m accused of doing what I said I wasn’t going to do.

See you again the first Tuesday of next month for another “trying-not-to-be-too-wordy” edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835
704.575.8850
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

Happy New Year

2011-01-04T00:13:00.001-05:00

Welcome to 2011, and Volume Nine (!) of this little monthly foray into observations and anecdotes touching on the sometimes craft and science, but mostly the caprice and alchemy, of that integral part of commerce we call marketing.

Each January, it's been our tradition to offer up 12 resolutions -- one corresponding to each month -- for the New Year. For those of you who missed it last year, here we go again. For those of you who read it last year...here we go again.

(That's the great thing about authoring one's own newsletter -- you get to call the shots...)

Welcome to Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

There’s a great scene in an old “Seinfeld” episode where Jerry has apparently telephoned reservations for a car rental. Except that when he gets there to pick up the car, he’s told there are none to be had. The woman at the counter explains that, for whatever bureaucratic reason, his rental was released to someone else. In his customary exasperated manner, Jerry “educates” her with the admonition that although it is their business to MAKE the reservation…they also have to be able to HOLD the reservation..!

It’s January of a New Year. From a marketing standpoint, presuming you’ve MADE your New Year’s resolutions, are you planning to actually HOLD them?

Here are 12 Resolutions, one for each month (in no particular order):

1. Guerilla Marketing: Think outside the box for ways to promote yourself. There are rules…and sometimes they're made to be broken.

2. Networking: Don't just focus on the standard business networking groups…look into joining associations, fraternal organizations, groups comprising fellow hobbyists, etc. That means getting more active in the social media milieu, as well...i.e. Facebook, LinkedIn,Twitter, et al.

3. Publicity: Toot your own horn if you have to; no one else knows your “key” as you do.

4. Positioning: All things being equal…what makes you “more” equal than others?

5. Seminars/Workshops: You think you know it all? Heck, maybe you do – at least as far as certain audiences are concerned, and the new business opportunities they might provide for you.

6. Newsletters: Share your ideas, broaden your constituency; send out industry-relevant information either as hard copy…or as an e-zine (such as what you’re presently reading).

7. Trade Shows: Go to them, be in them, network within them, write a program article for them, propose to give a seminar at them.

8. Event Marketing: Sponsor a cause, host an Open House; it’s good P.R. by “socializing” your business.

9. The Newspaper: Remember that old-fashioned medium? For business ideas, for client contact opportunities, simply to stay topical, don’t just rely on the 11:00 PM news. Read the newspaper.

10. Greeting Cards: It doesn’t have to be Christmas to send them to clients, prospects, colleagues, friends. Stay top of mind year-round, with Valentine’s Day, July 4th, Arbor Day – whatever! – as an excuse.

11. Postcards: Along with greeting cards, postcards are a fast, convenient, economical way to let people know about what's new with your business (think Realtors, Financial Advisors…).

12. JDK Marketing Communications Management: Yeah, I know, I “fudged” on this last one. But how else are you going to be able to effectively take care of the previous 11 resolutions…without first resolving to contact yours truly?

Baker's Dozen Bonus: Re-tool your website, if necessary, with updated info, new pictures, perhaps a video.

Have a happy, healthy and prosperous 2011. Hope to catch you again the first Tuesday of next month with Volume 9, Number 2 of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835
704.575.8850
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

The HemingWAY

2010-12-06T17:55:00.003-05:00

It's December, and the focus this issue is on a larger than life icon with a white beard.

Of course, we're talking about Ernest Hemingway.

We're also talking about two, maybe three clients of mine who'd like to start their own e-zine, and may be incorporating my writing/editing assistance.

So, to help them out, I'm recommending they heed the principles of simple, yet effective writing, as exemplified by "Papa."

Welcome to the last edition of 2010's Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Blogger Brian Clark, in his "Copyblogger" site,
( http://www.copyblogger.com/ernest-hemingway-top-5-tips-for-writing-well/ ) talks up the merits of writing for marketing purposes -- and let's face it, under the veneer of an entertaining newsletter, that should be the underlying function of an e-zine -- in a way that's, simply, easy to read.

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Ernest Hemingway’s Top 5 Tips For Writing Well

Who better?

Many business people faced with the task of writing for marketing purposes are quick to say:

Hey, I’m no Hemingway!

But really, who better than Hemingway to emulate? Rather than embracing the flowery prose of the literati, he chose to eschew obfuscation at every turn and write simply and clearly.

So let’s see what Ernest can teach us about effective writing.

1. Use short sentences.

Hemingway was famous for a terse minimalist style of writing that dispensed with flowery adjectives and got straight to the point. In short, Hemingway wrote with simple genius.

Perhaps his finest demonstration of short sentence prowess was when he was challenged to tell an entire story in only 6 words:

For sale: baby shoes, never used.

2. Use short first paragraphs.

See opening.

3. Use vigorous English.

Here’s David Garfinkel’s take on this one:

It’s muscular, forceful. Vigorous English comes from passion, focus and intention. It’s the difference between putting in a good effort and TRYING to move a boulder… and actually sweating, grunting, straining your muscles to the point of exhaustion… and MOVING the freaking thing!

4. Be positive, not negative.

Since Hemingway wasn’t the cheeriest guy in the world, what does he mean by be positive? Basically, you should say what something is rather than what it isn’t.

This is what Michel Fortin calls using up words:

By stating what something isn’t can be counterproductive since it is still directing the mind, albeit in the opposite way. If I told you that dental work is painless for example, you’ll still focus on the word “pain” in “painless.”

• Instead of saying “inexpensive,” say “economical,”

• Instead of saying “this procedure is painless,” say “there’s little discomfort” or “it’s relatively comfortable,”

• And instead of saying “this software is error-free” or “foolproof,” say “this software is consistent” or “stable.”

5. Never have only 4 rules.

Actually, Hemingway did only have 4 rules for writing, and they were those he was given as a cub reporter at the Kansas City Star in 1917. But, as any web writer knows, having only 4 rules will never do.

So, in order to have 5, I had to dig a little deeper to get the most important of Hemingway’s writing tips of all:

“I write one page of masterpiece to ninety-one pages of shit,” Hemingway confided to F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1934. “I try to put the shit in the wastebasket.”

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Thanks for your readership this past year. Happy Holidays and best wishes for a healthy and prosperous 2011.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-02T00:59:00.002-04:00

It's Thanksgiving month. As such, I thought I'd indulge my prerogative to fashion this column in a "not your usual" way and reflect, for once, on the professional side of things for which I am thankful.

I'm thankful for:

* The independence to be my own boss. And to work at a creative craft that can certainly be enervating...but enriching as well, as I help clients put a public "profile" on their businesses.

* The clients themselves, a virtual United Nations of personalities -- English, French, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Lebanese, South African --from whom I've learned something about their former cultures along with their equally diverse and varied businesses.

* The scope of work I've been able to do for them -- branding, logo design, corporate identity, print collateral, video, TV and radio commercials, publicity, websites -- to make my contributions all the more personally fulfilling.

* The camaraderie that comes with teamwork, as I and graphic designers, photographers, printers, videographers, web designers and other creative industry professionals build marketing programs to assist clients in pursuing their own dreams of success.

* The reach that technology affords all us small businesspeople, so that we may be competitive in a reasonable manner with our larger, more established business brethren; technology such as through various Social Media outlets as well as this E-zine you're reading...a great way, I've found, to stay top of mind with clients, prospects and colleagues.

* The opportunities afforded by living and working in a great mid-size city (that one hopes doesn't get too much bigger) so that it remains a manageable and embracing place for entrepreneurs and small businesses to succeed and grow.

* The same city that likes to have fun as well as put its shoulder to the wheel, so that there is additional opportunity, for instance, to assist party and event planners with a product as uniquely entertaining and customized as...caricatures. The proverbial "other hat" worn by yours truly:

http://www.cv-vision.com/ovse/jkweskin/

* And finally, a father who paved the creative way for me by being one of the authentic Mad Men -- an illustrator, copywriter, creative director -- I looked up to for guidance, support, perspective...and the genetic passing along of verbal and artistic capabilities.

For all this, and more, I am thankful this Thanksgiving.

See you again the first Tuesday of Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanza month...

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

Dan Smith Will Teach You Guitar

2010-10-05T06:05:00.004-04:00

In the dizzy marketing world of social media, Hi-Def TV commercials, YouTube self-promo videos, over-the-top PR campaigns, digitally animated billboards and glitzy special events, there's one approach that always seems to get short shrift.

This is a great story, published recently in The New York Times, edited here for brevity sake. It makes the case, at least in one person's marketing campaign, for considering that most basic of promotional formats: a headline, a visual and a simple message, printed on one side of an 8 1/2 x 11-inch sheet.

As Rod Serling might have said: "Submitted for your approval...the humble flier."

Welcome to the October edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

"Dan Smith Will Teach You Guitar...and How to Build a Brand"

For nearly 15 years, Dan Smith has plastered New York with fliers promoting his guitar lessons. And in the process, has become a cult icon -- and successful entrepreneur. Why even John Mayer is taking notice.

By PATRICK SAUER

Anybody who has ever set foot in a Manhattan coffee joint, bodega, or laundromat will recognize the following exhortation:

Dan Smith Will Teach You Guitar.

For those of you outside New York, these are the simple words seen on ubiquitous fliers that have enabled Dan Smith to follow his musical muse and become Gotham's most widely known guitar teacher. By combining the basic tools of paper, printer and photocopier, with a free introductory lesson, Dan Smith has created a brand that keeps him flush with 20 to 30 students at a time, soaking in his relaxed go-at-your-own-pace approach to teaching guitar. Here's our Q&A:

When did the flier campaign start?

I started teaching full time around 1996. I had been fliering heavily to get to a point to be solely a teacher, but they weren't the same ones you see today. The fliers have evolved. I put myself on the flier in 2003, but people say they've seen my face for 20 years. We all have exaggerated perceptions of things.

Did they always have the simple "Dan Smith Will Teach You Guitar" slogan?

Some form of that. I wanted to be as simple and straightforward as possible, but also set myself apart by having something that nobody could copy, like my name and face. Nobody can out-me me.

They seem to be everywhere. How often do you put up fliers?

They seem to be everywhere, but there are large parts of the city I don't flier. I am only one man wearing out shoe leather. I hang them whenever I can, on an ongoing basis. It's a bit of a dilemma because it works, which means I'm teaching, but then I don't have time to put up fliers. It's a nice problem to have.

Where do you put them up?

Wherever anyone can see them. I've been told fliers have been seen in Brooklyn even though I have never put one up there. People hang them for me out of their own enthusiasm, I guess. Some storeowners don't want the fliers, but others want them because it's a conversation piece, and I've been told it's a "stamp of approval" that makes a new business legitimate. All I want is a good spot.

The fliers definitely have a cult following.

It's got a strange life to it. There's a legion of blogs out there, John Mayer copied them, and people have posted a bunch of YouTube videos. Generally speaking, the reactions are positive. If nobody were paying attention, I wouldn't be teaching.

What is it specifically about the Dan Smith fliers?

That's an easy one -- the fact that they're everywhere. I'm consistent, and people know that this isn't a lark. I'm creating a brand. Everybody knows Coke, but it never stops advertising. Week-in week-out, month-in month-out, year-in year-out, I'm out there. The fliers penetrate people's perceptions, so all kinds of mythology have grown up around them. Consciously or subconsciously, people think of every other one they've ever seen, even if it's partially covered up.

How does it turn into sales?

Like any business, I get a lot of tire-kickers. Unlike other businesses, I probably get a lot more drunk and stoned teenagers leaving long rambling messages. Fortunately, I get a lot of people interested in playing guitar. It's not a school, which appeals to people who want to learn at their own pace. The lessons are focused and results-oriented, but it's a non-pressured relaxed atmosphere. Some people want to become great guitar players; others want to learn to play a single song at their wedding or to sing to their baby. It's great for me because I get to meet all kinds of people.

What is the financial set up?

There is a pay-as-you-go option for $100 an hour, but I also offer lesson plans, which are pay-in-advance and come with a discount. For example, there's a 10-lesson plan for $800. It's been a very successful model because the plans have a workable schedule with flexibility for real world encroachments. People know after 10 lessons they will learn something, although you get back what you put in.

It seems you've had quite a ride.

I have people dressing up like me for Halloween. I never would have imagined that. And it all starts with this low-fi, low-tech grassroots campaign. A two-year-old recognized me. Couldn't even say "guitar man" yet and was too young for me to put a pick in his hand, but who knows? Kid might need lessons one of these days.

Entrepreneur Spotlight
Name: Dan Smith
Company: Dan Smith Will Teach You Guitar
Age: 39
Location: New York City
Founded: 1996
Employees: 0

Revenue: Undisclosed

Web site: www.dansmithguitar.com

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Wasn't that refreshingly simple? Come by the first Tuesday of next month when we post on the virtual community corkboard another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

Mad about USP

2010-08-03T01:14:00.014-04:00

How many of you are hooked on “Mad Men?”

The soap operatic escapades of men and women working at a New York ad agency, circa 1964 (this season, anyway) hold a nostalgic place in my cobwebbed psyche, as my Dad was in the industry as an art director during that era.

But when I watch the show, I particularly enjoy watching Creative Director Don Draper challenge his team of copywriters and graphic designers – and even the account people – to focus on what it is that distinguishes the client’s product from that of their competitors.

What it was called then…is pretty much what it’s called today.

Welcome to the August edition of “Not Your Usual Marketing Tips” from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Since we’re waxing nostalgic with reference to “Mad Men,” I think I’ll turn the clock all the way back to, ahem, 2008, when this subject was first broached.

What's your USP?

And, no, it has nothing to do with the US Postal Service. It’s your “Unique Selling Proposition.” Or substitute the word Proposition with Proposal or Point. Any way you say it, it’s what those three words say about your business that, theoretically, no one else can say.

Simply stated, your USP should – in your marketing materials, position papers, sales letters, perhaps even your slogan – reflect the contention that what you sell is unique, something your competition cannot or chooses not to promote…culminating in the decision by your customer to act by exploring and/or purchasing your product or service.

Wikepedia further explains USP as a “marketing concept that was first proposed as a theory to explain a pattern among successful advertising campaigns (of the 1940s and 1950s). It states that such campaigns made unique propositions to the customer and that this convinced them to switch brands.

The term was invented by Rosser Reeves (an account executive with former independent ad agency giant) Ted Bates & Company. Today the term is used in other fields or just casually to refer to any aspect of an object that differentiates it from similar objects…A number of businesses and corporations currently use USPs as a basis for their marketing campaigns.”

Jay Abraham, with a string of successful books on the “guerilla” ways of marketing, opines that, “Even while you creatively imitate others, remember that it's also important to be different.

Distinguish your business or practice from all the rest. Make your enterprise special in the eyes of your customer or client. A USP is that distinct and appealing idea that sets you and your business, or practice, favorably apart from every other generic competitor.”

BusinessTown.com has a little more “tough love” message for you: “There may be very little difference between your product and your competitors’.

But if you can't find a way to communicate uniqueness and connect it to a need of your target, you might as well quit fighting your competition and sell out to them.

“There are many different ways to stake out a position. Just remember, your position reflects your unique selling proposition, and it is what makes your offering more valuable to your customers than what's being offered by your competition.”

No doubt by now you may have taken a cold, hard look at what you do for a living and thought, “but my business is really no different than others in this field.”

That’s the challenge. But it’s not unmeet-able. There are things about your business you may not be able to see – the old “forest for the trees” situation.

And that’s where it may take a professional marketing firm (Hello!) to help adjust your glasses for you…And help truly, and memorably, distinguish you vis-à-vis your competition. If you haven't done so by now, maybe it’s time you worked on your USP...ASAP.

Join us again the first Tuesday of next month as we adjust our fedoras and bouffant hairdos for another look at Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Analysis Paralysis

2010-07-06T09:51:00.025-04:00

I recently had a spirited conversation with a client about what I felt was the need to get a marketing initiative on the ground and running already, after much time and deliberation.

After all, I figured, this particular initiative was somewhat time-sensitive in order to reach a selected market so that the market's decisions to purchase could be made in a, what else, timely manner.

My client, however, had not been convinced that preceding methods of conveying the information were the best ones to implement.

To paraphrase...Tempus fugit, I said.

The distribution method was not optimally configured, the client countered.

And...the initiative rolls slowly toward that green light. Yet perhaps continuing analysis remains the appropriate course of "action" for now, and the foreseeable future.

The question I ask, however, is how long before that future is no longer foreseeable?

The popular term for this apparent torpor is "Analysis Paralysis."

Welcome to the mid-year edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

* From Wikepedia:

"The term 'analysis paralysis' or 'paralysis of analysis' refers to over-analyzing (or over-thinking) a situation, so that a decision or action is never taken, in effect paralyzing the outcome. A decision can be treated as over-complicated, with too many detailed options, so that a choice is never made, rather than try something and change if a major problem arises. A person might be seeking the optimal or 'perfect' solution upfront, and fear making any decision which could lead to erroneous results, when on the way to a better solution.

"In Aesop's The Fox and the Cat, the fox has 'hundreds of ways of escaping' while the cat has 'only one.' When they hear the hounds approaching, the cat scampers up a tree while the 'the fox in his confusion is caught up by the hounds.' The fable ends with the moral, 'Better one safe way than a hundred on which you cannot reckon.'"

"Peter P.," in his online blog, Internet Marketing Tools, weighs in on this subject:

"The opportunity costs of analysis exceed simply choosing a path, even if it may not be the best one, and acting on it now.

"We all get it. The bombardment of too much information, which you think would be nice in a world that totes knowledge as power. I’m here to tell you that’s utter and complete (B.S.).

You need to do some analysis and information gathering to make informed decisions, sure, but when you become obsessed with it…gathering info for info gathering’s sake…it becomes detrimental."

* Lori Watson Redding, in her blog, How To Achieve Your Network Marketing Success, asks:

"What happened to spontaneity and impetuousness? What happened to not worrying and taking a chance? Geesh. Did I get old or did I just grow up.

"Here’s what I know to be true:

"Sometimes it’s a really good thing to be cautious. We sometimes make better decisions when they are processed with deep-rooted perception after we have pursued an avenue wrought with months of insight and forethought.

"But oft-times we over-think things to death. Or, if I was to quote the movie, The Princess Bride, “not to the death, but to the pain.“ We scrutinize the obvious which causes personal agony. Instead of making a decision and RUNNING with it, we second guess ourselves, procrastinate and cause more aggravation and FAILURE because we don’t trust our inner voice."

* Chris Garrett, in his virtual column on "New Media" opines:

"Analysis Paralysis often comes from learned behavior over several years. Either it has proven beneficial, so you do a little more thinking and planning each time, or not enough planning has caused problems so each occasion you get a little more cautious.

"Planning is good. Failure to plan is planning to fail. But too much can be as crippling as not enough.

"It never fails to surprise me how different the world seems when my analysis faces reality. We all get some things right while other things seem to come from outer-space and no amount of thinking would have predicted it.

"Thinking on your feet is often as important as any amount of analysis.

Set a deadline and stick to it. Don’t be tempted to put it so far in the future we will all be flying around with personal jet packs.

"Partner with or get the second opinion of someone a little more reckless – my go-to hot-head is Nick. I’m starting to think my analysis paralysis has rubbed off on him though, heh.

"Get used to making decisions, it gets easier with practice. Start with small decisions ('caramel macchiato' vs 'double-shot-latte') and work up to the (big ones).

"Do one of the tasks on your list, then another. Easy or hard, doesn’t matter. Gain some momentum.

"Finally, Stop thinking about it and start doing something."

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As for yours truly, however, in respectful deference to my aforementioned client, the bottom line may also be the bottom line.

After all, it's their business, their money, their neck on the line.

So...what's the answer? I personally tend to operate my business in a "shoot first, ask questions later" fashion. Is that the "better" way?

Candidly, I'm not sure.

What do you think? If this subject inspires sufficient response, I'll post your comments in next month's Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
www.jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

E-zine Does It

2010-06-01T00:21:00.007-04:00

Sometime ago, I wrote about e-zines and a great resource site for both gathering info for your e-zine...and submitting your own to the site. With more and more of you taking advantage of this significant marketing tool (yes, marketing tool, as I for one have derived business from it...), let's revisit that column.

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Andy Warhol coined the observation that sooner or later everyone would have his or her “15 minutes of fame.” Now it seems everyone with an e-zine can have those 15 minutes…virtually whenever he or she mails one out.

Those of you writing e-zines, though, know what it’s like to sit down and stare at a blank screen when no compelling subject comes to mind. What do you do then?

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

As a copywriter, working on everything from brochures to ads to press releases to TV and radio commercials, I know what it’s like to stare at a blank page and trust that my capabilities will marry with my muse and something brilliant will emerge. Hah! If only it could be more expeditiously controlled.

There is a source, however, for those of you who, like me, also write for this 15-inch electronically illuminated screen and occasionally stare at it, scratching our heads wondering how to get cranking. If you need a jumpstart on a theme, a subject, or even want to plug in an entire piece (as long as appropriate credit is given), there’s a website that will “freely” help you out.

http://www.ezinearticles.com/ brings you to a virtual clearinghouse of already-written e-zines. There are literally hundreds to choose from, on such subjects as: Business, Finance, Self-Improvement, Health & Fitness, House & Family, Computers & Technology, News & Society, Public Speaking, Internet & Business Online. There’s no plagiarism issue; credit is expected in lieu of any kind of fee.

You can even arrange to submit your own articles so that others can glean information from them and link your name/website alongswide as an authority in that field. Through SEO and Keywords, that’s potential for a lot more eyes to see what you have to say beyond your own database.

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According to Wikipedia, as of February 10th of this year, Ezinearticles.com was ranked Number 131 in traffic among global websites and Number 51 in the United States.

In the business world where we're told success is a numbers game, those are pretty strong digits to take into consideration.

'Til we meet again the first Tuesday of next month for more virtual viewpoints from Not Your Usual Marketing Tips, happy e-zine to you and yours!

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz

704.846.4835 office

704.575.8850 mobile

Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

"Quote-Unquote"

2010-05-03T16:08:00.006-04:00

Saw a terrific one-man show the other day -- Frank Ferrante performing his tribute to Groucho Marx. The guy was great; he looked like him, dressed like him, sounded like him, and pretty much nailed his mannerisms.

And, of course, there were all those curmudgeonly, cynical quotes the curmudgeonly, cynical among us fans have come to know and cherish.

Welcome to the Merry Month of May edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

"What would it take to buy back my introduction to you?"

"I've had a perfectly lovely evening. But this wasn't it."

"From the moment I picked this book up until I laid it down, I was convulsed with laughter. Someday I intend to actually read it."

"I've worked myself up from nothing to a state of extreme poverty."

"I read in the newspapers they are going to have 30 minutes of intellectual stuff on television every Monday from 7:30 to 8.00 to educate America. They couldn't educate America if they started at 6:30."

It occurred to me that in the field of marketing, advertising and publicity, there've been some quotable teeth marks left, as well. None here by Groucho, but some pretty impressive folks just the same.

(And please keep in mind, I'm not knocking my chosen profession, nor the hands -- my clients -- that feed me; we're just having fun here...)

"All publicity is good, except an obituary notice."
Brendan Behan

"Advertising is legalized lying."
H.G. Wells

"Advertising is the art of convincing people to spend money they don't have for something they don't need."
Will Rogers

"An advertising agency is 85 percent confusion and 15 percent commission."
Fred Allen

"I am one who believes that one of the greatest dangers of advertising is not that of misleading people, but of boring them to death."
Leo Burnett

"I saw a subliminal advertising message, but only for a second"
Steven Wright

"In advertising, not to be different is virtual suicide."
Thornton Wilder

"In marketing I've seen only one strategy that can't miss - and that is to market to your best customers first, your best prospects second and the rest of the world last."
John Romero

"Ninety eight percent of the adults in this country are decent, hardworking, honest Americans. It's the other lousy two percent that get all the publicity. But then, we elected them."
Lily Tomlin

That's it for this edition. But before I sign off until the first Tuesday of next month when we reconvene in this same spot, I want to wish all my friends, colleagues and clients on the distaff side (who qualify)...a Happy and respected Mother's Day!

Joel Kweskin
www.jdkmarketing.biz
joel@jdkmarketing.biz

704.846.4835 office

704.575.8850 mobile

Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

"Hit 'em Where They Ain't"

2010-04-06T00:21:00.025-04:00

Jacques Barzun is a French-born American historian of ideas and culture, who once famously said "Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball..."

It's that time of year, boys and girls, when The Greatest Game Ever Invented is upon us to officially begin its 110th season as our National Pastime. And along with it, some lessons we can apply to, yes, marketing.

Welcome to the "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

A few years ago, I pitched this article to the readers of this column. Here's the replay:

There was a baseball player around the turn of the century -- at 5',4" the shortest to ever to play the game -- named Wee Willie Keeler. Click here: Willie Keeler - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Known for perfecting the "Baltimore Chop," whenever Willie stepped to the plate the chant would ring out, “Hit’em where they ain’t!”

The meaning was simplistically clear: hit the ball where the fielders WEREN’T positioned, to improve the chances for getting a base hit.

What if, metaphorically speaking, you could “hit” your target markets…where your competition “ain’t?”

Most businesses – however small or large – tend to market themselves through the standard avenues…the local newspaper, the local weekly, radio, TV, et al. And buckshot mailings to one’s database of clients, colleagues and friends. Chances are that your industry counterparts are doing mostly that same thing.

Maybe the next time you’re “at bat,” consider going – pardon the pun – farther afield. That is, think about hitting those markets not just among your primary audience but also to the outer periphery of your spheres of influence.

A CPA, for instance – whose services are needed by virtually everyone – can make herself the go-to professional with the local remodelers trade association. A chiropractor might want to approach the public library system (think of all that stretching and bending all day long by the staff just to put books away) with clinics exclusively for that organization. A sometime caricature artist might join a wedding and event planners organization to be their unique source of party entertainment. (Hey wait a minute, that's me..!)

For that matter, maybe there’s a hobby you have, or a weekend passion you love, that can be parlayed into a business opportunity -- by providing your services to fellow aficionados. Do these enthusiasts have associations? Do they have meetings? Do they have means, i.e. literature or promotional materials, by which they communicate with one another…and in which you can contribute an ad or, better yet, an informative article?

Next time you grab that metaphorical bat and stand in the box…you may want to think outside of it every now and then. And hit’em where they -- your competition -- likely ain’t.

See you again the first Tuesday of next month, with another slugging edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
www.jdkmarketing.biz
joel@jdkmarketing.biz

704.846.4835 office

704.575.8850 mobile

Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

Spring Cleaning

2010-03-02T01:29:00.004-05:00

It's March. Spring arrives not a moment too soon on the 21st of this month. Customarily, this is also the time of year when we take stock of inventory, both personal and professional, and engage in a little -- maybe a lot of? -- Spring cleaning.

Welcome to the new-broom-sweeps-clean edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Except, in this space we don't use cleaning utensils...we use words of wisdom culled from friends and colleagues whose respective areas of expertise comprise disciplines we should acknowledge if we hope to make any kind of impact in marketing and promoting our businesses.

So, if you haven't checked your utility room pantry yet for these goodies, check'em out here.

Denise Garbacz is the owner of FastForward Marketing Solutions, an agency specializing in helping small business owners with online marketing promotion. Contact her at http://www.getwebwired.com/ or email at info@getwebwired.com

"Local search has been the single biggest activity that any business can do to get more leads for their business online and the best part is that it’s free. To get a listing, go to Google Local Business Center (local.google.com) and claim your listing. There is a simple form to fill out for your business name, description, hours of operation, and a place the customers can write reviews. These listings appear with a map at the top of the page with a list of three, seven or 10 other businesses. This listing will generate significant leads if done correctly. Listings only show up in your locality so the competition for placement is usually not significant.

"SEO experts will use a Google Local Listing as a core activity for helping a client get visibility in their market. If you’re having trouble getting your listing seen in the local listings, there are several things you can do to improve either your position or to rank in the listings:

1. Make sure that the business description contains your keyword in the Title. This is becoming less important to Google but still works for the time being to improve your listing.

2. Make sure that the description of your business is accurate and contains your keyword. Again, because of spammers, this is becoming less of a factor but is still a 'nice to have.'

3. List your business in as many local directories as possible. There are 10-15 local directories that are free, such as Yellow Pages, Local.com, etc.

"Although Google is the biggest factor, make sure that you also list your business with Yahoo and Bing. The process is the same although the results will be less because there are fewer users."

Ira Bass, who runs IB Media, strategic media planning and buying, is both "online" and "off" with his thoughts. Reach Ira at http://www.ibmedia.biz/index.html or e-mail him at ibmedia@carolina.rr.com

"Why is it that whenever we hear about social media and how it’s being used, the article or Google search depicts a competition as opposed to a collaboration? Versus vs. AND. A competition between 'Traditional Media' and 'Social Media.' New vs. Old. Don’t get me wrong. The advent of social media has provided a valuable means for most marketers to touch their customers or prospects in a way never thought possible previously. Instead of messages being sent out with the hope they’ll stick (traditional), now a one to one communication may exist (social). This is all great. But, Kevin Costner had it right when he built the Field of Dreams. Marketers today who believe that 'if they build it the customers will come' are in for an awakening. Fact is 'if you build it they won’t come unless you tell them you’re there.'

"Traditional vs. Social. Why not traditional AND social? Doesn’t it makes sense to use several forms of media to reach your target audience? Back in the Stone Age of three years ago we called this multiple touch points. The world has changed in the last three years but the basics used to reach your audience have not. Can’t we all just get along?"

Dianne Chase is the owner of Chase Media -- public relations, crisis management and media consultancy -- and weekend/spot news anchor at WBT-am radio. So she knows a little something about putting one's best face forward. Reach Dianne at http://www.c4cs.com/index.html or e-mail her at dianne@chasemedia.us

"Time for some sprucing up of your PR? Time to take a look at your absolute number one PR tool - YOU!

"You are the walking, talking face of your business. So… what do people see, hear and believe about you and what you do? Take time to consider three critical keys to your personal PR:

"Verbal- What words are you using to convey your message? Are they the right words for the right person via the right medium? Do they communicate and truly connect? Are you hitting the notes they want to hear or are you simply ‘white noise’ to them? Consider a professional writer or communications coach to refine your message.

"Vocal- How do you sound? Have you asked for unbiased feedback from a professional or trusted colleague? The tone of your voice, your inflection, your volume could all be sabotaging your words. Think of the last time you were so distracted by someone’s voice you couldn’t concentrate on the words they were saying. Is your message lost in your voice?

"Visual- How do you appear to your audience- whether of one across a desk or multitudes via online video? Is there something you’re doing physically that you’re completely unaware of that’s diluting your message? Are you properly using your eyes, face, body along with your mouth to convey your words? Have you had presentation skills training to help you refine your physical communication?

"Keeping in mind these three critical tools to your Personal PR will help you advance your professional and personal goals and keep your Public Relations truly positive!"

Allan Horowitz is the maven behind Blue Planet Creative, an award winning video production company. Contact Allan at http://www.blueplanetcreative.net/welcome.html or e-mail him at info@blueplanetcreative.com

"Let’s face it. These days, every business is competing for a slice of a much smaller pie. Some businesses are scaling back their marketing efforts trying to wait out the storm (big mistake). Others are realizing that this is the perfect opportunity to get their message out there while the “traffic” is light. (This is smart) And the really smart businesses are using video.

"Today, the applications for video are virtually unlimited: DVD distribution, YouTube (and many other YouTube-like sites) video blogs, PDAs, cell phones, etc. That makes video such a powerful tool; the most powerful medium in the world is now deliverable on so many platforms it just doesn’t make sense not to use it.

"Video delivers what no other media can: motion and emotion. In light of the current economy and the power of video, we’ve discovered that one of the most effective ways to use video to market a business is to tell the story of that business in documentary form. It’s a soft-sell approach that lets prospective clients get to know more about that business…without being 'sold,' the story behind it and why they can feel comfortable doing business with them. It helps create that connection that otherwise would not be there. It’s a different approach that allows you to sell your wares without selling. And with so many distribution platforms and outlets, the exposure is enormous. Video is the marketing tool of now.

"Remember, if you’re in business, there is power in your story."

So there you have it. Some thoughts on Spring cleaning and your marketing approach(es) this New Year.

Next time, we address another seasonal ritual: getting started eight months early on gift recommendations for Christmas.

Just kidding.

But do look for us the first Tuesday of next month for a further Spring fever edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835 office
704.575.8850 mobile
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

A Word to the Wise

2010-02-01T15:26:00.007-05:00

Here's a little nugget that was planted in this space several years ago, but the subject's universality still bears fruit.

According to Robert McCrum, William Cran and Robert Siegel in “The Story of English” (Penguin 1992), “The statistics of English are astonishing. Of all the world’s languages (which now number over 2,700), it is arguably the richest in vocabulary. The compendious Oxford English Dictionary lists about 500,000 words; and a further half million technical and scientific terms remain uncatalogued.”

Author David Wilton adds, in “Wilton’s Word and Phrase Origins,” that “about 200,000 words are in common use today. An educated person has a vocabulary of about 20,000 words and uses about 2,000 in a week's conversation.”

So, with all the wonderful words available to us, why in the name of “multi-tasking” do we continue to use cliché after cliché to describe that which we bring to our professional capabilities?

Welcome to another addition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

I once did a demonstration before my business referral group of how I develop a print ad. To help determine the eventual concept, I interviewed a volunteer “client” by asking him different questions about his business. Sure enough, when asked what differentiates himself from his competition, he proudly intoned “service.”

Oh really, I asked, what else?

“We care about the customer.”

Hmmmm, you don’t say...

“And we’re experienced,” he added.

I’m going to take a wild stab at this, but I’ll just bet that isn’t the first time those words have been used to excite and entice a potential customer.

Look, we’re all guilty of falling back on the familiar – in this case, words that have been used ten thousand times before. But the more serious consequence of using these hackneyed phrases is that they simply lose their meaning after a while.

If you say about your business that you provide “great service,” that you really and truly “care” about your customer, and that no one can match your “experience,” I’ll counter that every time with “SO WHAT?” Every business can, in one facet or another, make that claim! You may BE different from your competition…but you’re not SAYING anything differently.

Put it this way -- if text for your brochure, ad or 30-second oral commercial is worded in such generalities that ANYBODY else can put their name at the end of it, it’s time to consider rewriting the piece.

So, how can you sound differently? Sound differently! Keep a dictionary or thesaurus next to your computer. Illustrate examples of your “service.” Use case studies that back up how you “care.” Quote testimonials where others have benefited from your “experience.”

You’ll come across as uniquely differentiated, more accomplished and with a better chance of getting your points across.

When Gloria Estefan sings of telling her lover how she feels “but the words get in the way,” we all know how that feels. But we can’t afford, literally, to let that happen when it’s time to sell our products and services.

Whether it’s developing your printed or electronic marketing materials…speaking at a seminar…or simply doing your 30-second spiel at a networking get-together…choose your words well, and wisely. And make them words that count.

See you the first Tuesday of next month for another etymological sampling of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

www.jdkmarketing.biz
joel@jdkmarketing.biz

704.846.4835 office

704.575.8850 mobile

Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

New Year, New Opportunities

2010-01-04T01:55:00.004-05:00

Ready to face a New Year of business, braced for all the challenges the marketplace, the economy, new technology and fateful caprice will invariably throw at you?

Neither am I.

But, like the Nike commercial philosophizes, sometimes you gotta pull yourself up by the boot straps and "Just Do It." (What I'd like to know is, who still wears boot straps..?)

Welcome to the inaugural entry for 2010's Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

...And my annual revival, with some modifications, of proposed resolutions for the New Year:

There’s a great scene in an old “Seinfeld” episode where Jerry has apparently telephoned reservations for a car rental. Except that when he gets there to pick up the car, he’s told there are none to be had. The woman at the counter explains that, for whatever bureaucratic reason, his rental was released to someone else. In his customary exasperated manner, Jerry “educates” her with the admonition that although it is their business to MAKE the reservation…they also have to be able to HOLD the reservation..!

It’s January of a New Year. From a marketing standpoint, presuming you’ve MADE your New Year’s resolutions, are you planning to actually HOLD them?

Here are 12 Resolutions, one for each month (in no particular order):

* Guerilla Marketing: Think outside the box for ways to promote yourself. There are rules…and sometimes there are no rules.

* Networking: Do more, by joining more…business networking groups, associations, fraternal organizations, fellow hobbyists, etc. That means joining the social media milieu, as well...i.e. Facebook, Twitter, et al.

* Publicity: Toot your own horn; no one else knows your “key” as you do.

* Positioning: All things being equal…what makes you “more” equal than others?

* Seminars: You think you know it all? Heck, maybe you do – at least as far as certain audiences are concerned, and the new business opportunities they might provide for you.

* Newsletters: Share your ideas, broaden your constituency; send out industry-relevant information either as hard copy…or as an e-zine (such as what you’re presently reading).

* Trade Shows: Go to them, be in them, mingle within them, write a program article for them.

* Event Marketing: Sponsor a cause, have an Open House; it’s good P.R. by “humanizing” your business.

* The Newspaper: Remember that old-fashioned concept? For business ideas, for client contact opportunities, simply to stay topical, don’t just rely on the 11:00 PM news. Read the newspaper.

* Greeting Cards: It doesn’t have to be Christmas to send them. Stay top of mind year-round, with Valentine’s Day, July 4th, Arbor Day – whatever! – as an excuse.

* Postcards: Along with greeting cards, post cards are a fast, convenient, economical way to let people know about your business (think Realtors, Financial Advisors…).

* JDK Marketing Communications Management: Yeah, I know, I “fudged” on this last one. But how else are you going to be able to effectively take care of the previous 11 resolutions…without first resolving to contact yours truly?

Did I mention re-tooling your website, if necessary? Mine was necessary...and so I'm pleased to announce my newly revamped and updated site. Come visit:

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

Thanks go to graphic designer Tim Faragher, now flexing his muscles in the web world: tim.faragher@gmail.com

Have a happy, healthy and prosperous 2010. And we’ll see you again the first Tuesday of next month with another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835
704.575.8850
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

You Da Maven

2009-11-30T20:02:00.008-05:00

I've had some HARO-wing moments in recent days. And the person responsible is Don Rosenberg.

(Okay, enough with the feeble attempt at melodramatic humor...)

What I'm talking about is a unique PR program that anybody can use and anybody can benefit from.

Welcome to the Winter Solstice edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Don, of Instant Organic Garden fame -- http://www.instantorganicgarden.com/contact-us/don-rosenberg-charlotte-nc/ -- clued me in on something he's been using himself to help promote his business.

HARO stands for "Help A Reporter Out" -- http://www.helpareporter.com/

Having been a Journalism major, that name, and its purpose, resonates with me as I harken back to my campus newspaper writer/editor days. I also think it's just cool sounding.

It's a two-platformed program that bridges the distance between source and resource. On one side, reporters/writers/authors/bloggers/TV/radio (terrestrial and Internet) folk sign on to send out mass queries to online subscribers to help gather information for their respective articles, projects, media shows, et al.

On the other side, one can sign up and receive all these queries...and then determine if there's any fit for themself as the source for the query.

For example, if I sign on as someone writing a monthly newsletter -- ahem, such as I do -- and am looking for information on the role of caricature art in marketing as my next subject, I'll send out my query to that effect, in broadcast fashion, with a description of my subject and return contact info on myself.

If on the other hand, I sign up to be on the receiving side and I see this query, I may answer it in the hopes that the writer will want to quote me or whatever on my capabilities and thoughts as a caricature artist.

In Don's case, he's been sending out queries to gather information for a book he's writing. Acknowledgment to and identification of his selected sources will surely find their way into the pages of his tome.

Frankly, the way I've been using HARO is as a PR "tool" to let clients and colleagues know of possible opportunities for them to be interviewed through media outlets they might not have had access to otherwise.

If their response is accepted, that's good PR for them...good value-added from me.

I recommend signing up with HARO. It's free and it's kind of fun to see all of the intriguing subjects being covered out there in both the atmo- and blogospheres. Maybe you'll get to appear on the Tyra Banks show (one of the actual media outlets listed).

In the meantime, look for this cyber vehicle the first Tuesday of the New Year with a new "broadcast" of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

And Happy Holidays to you and yours.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

joel@jdkmarketing.biz

704.846.4835

Radio Free Charlotte

2009-11-02T19:25:00.003-05:00

Don Crosby wants to introduce you to yourself.

And then appear on his radio show to talk about it.

He'll even grant you time to promote your business.

Sounds like a pretty good deal to me and for anyone looking to tout their business.

Welcome to the turkey month edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Don, through the auspices of Global Behavior -- http://www.globalbehavior.com/ -- a licensing, consulting and training company, offers unique behavioral assessment tools which help businesses improve morale, identify accurate motivators, improve communications and save large amounts of loss profits by providing an accurate understanding of their people. His clients say it's right on the money.

"I apply this assessment tool," Don says, "which introduces people I've never met to themselves and to their families and our radio community. It's interesting, thought provoking talk radio. Perfect for anyone and everyone… business people or singles, couples, and families and simply for anyone who is interested in having a deeper understanding of themselves. It's safe and enjoyable."

What I like about Don's deal, frankly, is the gracious and generous opportunity he provides to not only have a little fun exploring our inner selves -- and let's face it, the better we understand ourselves, the better we can relate to others...including clients, colleagues and even family and friends -- but to also grab the mike and do a little self promoting.

Don's show is broadcast on Charlotte radio station WAVO, 1150 AM, Saturdays 12 noon to 1:00 PM. Go to www.soundbehavior.com and click on “Sign Up For the Show.” Based on a first come, first serve basis, potential guests will be emailed a "ProScan" behavioral survey that takes just a few minutes to complete. Once approved upon review, a date and time will be scheduled for an appearance on the show.

Hey, part of the marketing "mix" we promote to advance one's business...how often does one get the chance to state our case on radio? Check it out.

And, BTW -- in the texting parlance of my kids -- if you know of any corporate interest in Don's show, he tells me advertising sponsors are more than welcome.

In the meantime, look for us the first Tuesday of next month, when Not Your Usual Marketing Tips will once again be on the air. Or at least on your computer screen...
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Unabashed Plugs Dept.: Through the publicity efforts of JDK Marketing Communications Management, a couple of my clients made "the big time" recently.

Angie Lucas got some buzz for her new online "make your own" cupcakes business, on WBTV: http://www.wbtv.com/global/story.asp?s=11417050

And from The Business Journal a couple of weeks back -- Savannah Shaw, Etiquette and Protocol Consultant, was featured on their Entrepreneurs page.

http://charlotte.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2009/10/19/smallb1.html

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835

Meet Up and Speak!

2009-10-06T05:02:00.008-04:00

I gave a talk earlier today.

It was presented to the Charlotte Entrepreneurs Organization, one of a multitude of MeetUp groups across the area. Search results - Meetup.com MeetUp, if you're not already familiar with the concept, brings "affinity" or like-minded folks together in groups of mutual interest.

Welcome to the crisp, Fall-is-already-in-the-air edition of Not Your Usual Marketing tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

For example, the group I spoke to today comprises, as the name would imply, individuals in business for themselves seeking networking, educational and fraternal opportunities among primarily the self-employed.

This edition of NYUMT bridges two "disciplines" I wanted to address:

1. The merits of joining organizations to further your networking opportunities (especially those that cater to your own personal or professional interests). For instance, I belong to two MeetUp groups in addition to the Charlotte Entrepreneurs Organization -- the Jewish Community Business Circle of Charlotte, ostensibly for my marketing business; and the Charlotte Wedding and Event Planners Group, primarily for my caricature business. Click here: Caricatures By Joel

2. The merits of speaking before these, or any groups. Look, let's face it, the advent of first the Internet and now social networking has given us all a certain "entitlement" (in the good sense) that encourages self expression without the automatically perceived need to locate an "expert" outside the ranks. And/or one that necessitates paying a fee for that expertise.

Each one of us has something of value to share with others. My buddy and colleague Ira Bass, of IB Media -- Click here: Media planning and buying -- currently gives a terrific talk to various groups on LinkedIn. He's not hired by LinkedIn, nor is he some techno-geek. He does it of his own volition. He simply knows his stuff on the subject and relates better to his audience because he's just another "schlub" (I use the Yiddish term affectionately) like you or me. But in getting out there "on the stump," people get to know Ira for his "real" work...

While public speaking has been famously listed right up there with death as among the most feared of human experiences (my own list would include being forced to watch more than 30 seconds of "The View"), nevertheless the opportunity to speak should be embraced as another critical component of one's marketing mix.

My talk earlier today went well. (Thanks for asking...) I actually lifted a couple of previous NYUMT's; a legitimate way to "recycle" and refresh your marketing message is to take from one of your previous writings, newsletters, blogs, etc.

In the meantime, look for us the first Tuesday of next month for another soapbox-standing verbal oration from Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Please Release Me

2009-08-31T11:45:00.006-04:00

In addition to writing brochures, ads, website content, video and broadcast scripts, we also write press releases. But often, it’s like pulling teeth to get the client to consider what topics are worthy of a release.

Welcome to the back-from-vacation edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

“What’s so exciting about what I do?” they’ll protest. To which I say, you’re either too modest or you’re too close to the situation. The old “can’t-see-the-forest-for-the-trees” syndrome.

Well, if you’re too close to your business that you can’t see what might be of interest to your customers and prospects alike, you can be forgiven. If it’s because you’re too modest, well…sorry, you can’t be forgiven.

You’re in business…to do business…and make business. Part of the equation therein is to make sure that you dispense with self-consciousness and learn to toot your own horn. (I’m talking to you, Young Lady…)

Joan Stewart is a nationally known maven on writing press releases -- http://www.publicityhound.com/ -- so along with some of her thoughts on the subject, I’ve added my own here to help push you out onto the publicity stage.

Here are 15 topics to help give you the impetus to consider that all-important part of your marketing mix. These 15 are by no means all the subjects available to you…but they’ll do as starters.

Have a press release written when:

· You’ve formed an alliance with another company or individual
· You or your business celebrates an anniversary
· You’re appearing at an event as a speaker, host, panelist, etc.
· You’re appointed to a Board or Committee of significance
· You or your business has received an award
· You’ve authored and published a printed or online e-book
· You’ve decided to begin a blog or e-zine
· You’ve offered a class or seminar, online or offline
· You’ve done charitable work, such as with Habitat for Humanity or the Humane Society
· You’re sponsoring a contest
· You‘ve been awarded a contract by a major or industry-significant new (or existing) client
· You’re having an Open House
· You have completed academic certification in your profession
· You offer a cogent opinion on a hot topic of the day, preferably germane to your industry
· You’re offering special discounts…or value-added features to your product/service

Press releases are relatively inexpensive (all you generally pay for is the professional writing of the piece…along with, perhaps, the time to research media destinations and send it out to them along with online press release portals). Unlike a paid-for advertisement, once a release is picked up and its information runs on the printed and online page, it lends further “legitimacy” and “newsworthy-ness” to the business.

Make sure to include them on your own website as well.

(And, of course, if you’d like to consider going ahead and producing a press release…we’re “write” here for you.)

See you the first Tuesday of next month for another not-publicity-shy version of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

joel@jdkmarketing.biz

704.846.4835

Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

A Little Summer Reading

2009-07-29T22:17:00.004-04:00

I’m reading a little book, aptly titled “The Power of Small.”(2009, Broadway Books, New York) It’s co-written by Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval, who preside over one of the nation’s leading ad agencies, the Kaplan Thaler Group. Among their accounts is Aflac. And among their signature creations is the Aflac duck.

Welcome to the mid-summer, smaller than usual Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Parenthetically, Kaplan Thaler is one of the most recognized representatives of the ad industry. She is frequently on TV news and talk shows, opining on industry trends and events.

But although the book has been penned by a couple of real sharp marketing minds, the subject is really pretty universal and, as such, can be filtered through the lens of whatever profession you’re in.

Interestingly, as Thaler and Koval point out, their mantra is – unlike Richard Carlson’s “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff” – hey, the small stuff does matter.

“Taking the time to give a compliment or being attuned to a colleague or customer’s subtle body cues are not inconsequential actions,” they posit. “They tell a story. They are the details that make or break a relationship, or crack the case…”

They then go on to illustrate through a series of anecdotes and stories (mostly true; they interviewed all kinds of folks, from building custodians to TV stars) how small acts of kindness, compassion or simple interest in another’s story or plight have led to significant advancements in one’s personal as well as business life.

“Did you double-check that presentation one last time, or hold the elevator for a stranger?” they ask. Disparate stuff, but it all flows together in almost cosmic fashion.

As for my own little story:

As a college sophomore, I attended a public dance at one of the local New York City universities. At one point, I noticed two girls standing side by side. I asked one of them to dance. We dated…for years. And then we got married. Wendy and that girlfriend of hers are still the oldest and best of friends.

Linda Kaplan Thaler.

Tune in again the first Tuesday of next month for another O. Henry ending to Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

joel@jdkmarketing.biz

704.846.4835

Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

Cleaning Up The Mess

2009-07-06T22:47:00.004-04:00

Every so often, we turn over this column to words of wisdom from friends, colleagues and clients as they additionally reveal a compelling back story on their own life.

Welcome to the July edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Before gaining fame as The DreamSpeaker,™ (“Helping you and your organization increase productivity, efficiency or profits 25% by pursuing that one thing which you can do better than anyone else…your unique purpose, your passion, your dream!”), Joe Murtagh sold insurance, and retirement and estate planning exclusively for business owners and, all the while, wanted to know what made them successful.

"No one in my family had ever been in business, so I started reading two best-selling business books each month,” Joe recounts.

"Soon I found myself assisting clients with their business planning issues as well as their insurance and financial services concerns. Shortly after, I started writing a bi-weekly column for the local Business Journal and before long found I had become a ‘consultant.’

“The Business Journal columns proved to be a great marketing tool and, over time, led to the creation of seven different training programs. Eventually, I was asked to do an International Keynote address that has led to a full-time career as a speaker, facilitator and trainer.

“For me, effective marketing starts with the ability to understand the ‘job’ that my client is trying to get done.

“What are the problems your customers are trying to solve or what are they doing now that could be done faster, easier, more conveniently or with less expense? Answer these questions for your customers and prospects and they will beat a path to your door.

“In ‘Reinventing Your Business Model,’ in the December 2008 Harvard Business Review, the authors reveal what companies must do to capture game-changing marketing opportunities. A couple that comes to mind with my family:

“P&G with its Swiffer mops addressed a customer need in a dramatically better way. No more buckets, hot water, heavy mops and harsh cleaners. Now one simple lightweight disposable applicator on the end of a broom handle does the trick. ‘My hands are so soft these days and I owe it all to Swiffer.’

“Your customer wants to know that someone is thinking... and thinking about them. The best of marketing starts out by thinking about opportunities to satisfy real customers who need a job done.

“My wife used to joke about spending $15.95 in order to purchase a CD to get the one song she wanted. She would drive to the store, sort through the racks, find the artist she wanted, make sure her one song was part of the CD, pay at the check out and listen to it on her way home.

“Apple blew up that business model with its iPod and iTunes music store. Now for the same $15.95, my wife can get 16 songs from 16 different artists and play them instantly as she downloads them to her hand held device and inserts her ear buds anywhere she is…at home or in her car.

“Although we don’t live in India, auto manufacturer Tata Motors is serving a new customer base with its Nano, the $2,500 car aimed at Indian families who can't afford any other type of car. Luxury? No, but a huge step up from motor scooters that were the only other affordable option before the Nano.

“All sustainably successful marketing comes from finding a way to create value for customers by helping them clean up the mess that they currently are dealing with in order to get a job done. Any job a customer is doing creates a marketing opportunity for a better solution.”

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Joe Murtagh’s mantra is: Develop unstoppable power by connecting with your unique purpose and achieve it through a can-do attitude, empowered by acquiring the competencies necessary to succeed and implementing them through interdependent teams of like-minded people.

You can reach Joe at Joe@TheDreamSpeaker.com , log on at http://www.thedreamspeaker.com/ or call him at 1-800-239-0058.

And you can reach yours truly at the info noted below. In the meantime, join us again the first Tuesday of next month for another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/
joel@jdkmarketing.biz
704.846.4835
Facebook, LinkedIn, Plaxo

Ol' Reliable

2009-06-02T11:52:00.008-04:00

I’m in the middle of preparing a brochure for a client for what seems like about the 400th time. Not for the same client. But in my decades – yes, I now count my career in decades – of producing marketing materials, I’ve easily worked on hundreds of brochures. Let’s face it, aside from one’s website, the venerable, good-old-fashioned brochure still does yeoman duty representing the “face” of a company.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

The role of the brochure has changed with the advent of the website. Prior to that shape-shifting, electric and electronic vehicle, brochures were the be-all and end-all, with most of what one wanted to describe about one’s company packed into its narrow (generally) tri-folded panels.

Now brochures of all sizes are generally seen as the “sizzle” (some brief, broad, brush strokes on a business) to the “steak”(the website which, given its virtually unlimited size, can pack within it all of a company’s nuts and bolts).

Still, there are some key elements to be considered in the making of a successful brochure. About.com offers this Checklist of materials that they suggest should go into “building” a brochure. And I concur. These points may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised how many of them are neglected (you included?):

Name of Location, Business or Organization

Address

Phone Number

Fax Number

Email Address

Web Page Address

Headline that creates curiosity, states a major benefit, or otherwise entices the reader to open and read your brochure

Headline that states the name of the Product, Project, or Described Process
Subheads

Short, easy to read blocks of text

Lists, charts

Key Benefits (2-3)

Features

Instructions, steps, parts (for a procedure, to assemble a product, etc.)

Biography (of business owner, key members of organization, officers, etc.)

Mission Statement

History

Logo

Graphic Image(s) (including purely decorative elements)

Photographs of product, place, people

Diagram, flow chart

Call to Action (What you want the reader to do: call, visit, fill out a form, etc.)

And now that you know what to put into your new, or even revamped, brochure, you also know whom to call to help you put it all together… ;)

Look for another, more-than-just-a-tri-fold, Not Your Usual Marketing Tips the first Tuesday of next month.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

LinkedIn, Plaxo, Facebook

Low Tech, Value Added

2009-05-05T00:38:00.005-04:00

My wife and I recently spent a couple of delightful days on St. Simons Island, off the Georgia coast (near Brunswick). http://www.stsimonsguide.com/ssi.html

Parenthetically, this is one terrific place to “chill.” It’s like a mini Hilton Head – beach, boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, history, even a small cineplex – yet without the commercial crassness and overbuilt infrastructure.

What I remember, additionally, is what one independent real estate agent did to help promote her business.

Welcome to the May edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Strolling down the small, main drag in the “downtown” section of the village, we noticed a woman working at her desk, door fully open to let in the sea breezes to her tiny realty office. And to let folks see how “accessible” she was for any inquiries – marketing points right off the bat.

She took the initiative to let us know about property she had, although we assured her we weren’t in the market. Nevertheless, she engaged us quite naturally in conversation and implied it was still a bullish market in St. Simons. Where we learned, by the way, that John Kennedy, Jr. was married on the “QT” and one of my idols – the famed caricaturist from Mad Magazine, Jack Davis – still resides. http://www.americanartarchives.com/davis,jack.htm

She gave us materials, of course, but she also gave us a small, vertical-shaped card with her name and contact info. On the card was a concise listing of restaurants in the immediate area.

Because, after all, while you’re visiting and considering living here, you gotta eat, right?

That’s it -- a simple card with some simple…yet appreciated…information. Because it was timely and informative for us, and still relevant to what she does for a living.

Is that something a business coach, for instance, might hand out? In that case, though, perhaps listing resources like SCORE, the Business Journal, a recommended accountant or tax planner, marketing assistance, or the like? Perhaps a pet sitting company could list a preferred veterinary clinic, local dog parks, a “MeetUp” pet group, hotel chains that accept pets, etc.

It could be in the form of a postcard. It could be a bookmark. It could be on the back of a business card.

You get the idea. And who knows, your prospect/clients just might get the idea themselves that you’re a pretty thoughtful person – who sees a broader-minded picture in the nurturing of a relationship with that prospect.

An old-fashioned approach, perhaps. Born in the laid-back surroundings of a place where the pace may be a little slower. And the wheels of commerce may grind more than they whir. But the results can be just as satisfying as any prototypical high-tech grabbing at one’s senses.

Come back again the first Tuesday of next month for some more sand-in-your-shoes ideas from Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

And from the "What-Page-Of-Dr.-Spock's-Book-Is-This-From" Department: Commercials for absorbent towels or cleaning solutions where some brat graffitis up the living room wall, or revels in splashing himself with spilled milk or juice...and good ol' Mom smiles bemusedly at her cute little tyke as she prepares to gleefully clean the mess. Is it me, or do both characters deserve to be whacked upside the head..?

Getting Through This Mess...While Spending Less, Part 2

2009-04-07T00:41:00.005-04:00

With the economy doing its best to discourage efforts to promote and market ourselves, there are still ways to make your presence known...without necessarily having to spend on big ticket media such as TV, radio, and traditional print advertising.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management, your Official Marketing E-zine of the Recession of 2009.

Last month we began by looking at "10 Ways to Market Yourself Without Using Ads, TV, Radio...or Even Brochures." In no particular order, we touched on the first five. Here’s the remaining handful. These are suggestions, ideas, approaches that everyone -- from accountants to wedding planners -- can use to their advantage. And break through to your markets…without breaking the bank along the way.

Mailings

* “The most successful people write personal notes regularly” -- Tom Peters

* Send out Holiday Cards…other than at Christmas.

* Always send a follow-up note after a meeting.

*Acknowledge a client/prospect with a note re. their having appeared or been quoted in the paper or magazine.

* Add a message to your mailed invoices or estimates, offering other services

Positioning

* Create a niche for yourself – be the “one and only” professional serving a particular industry or local group.

* Play up an ability in a memorable way: “I’ll get back to you within 65 minutes.”

* Change your phone message to incorporate a marketing or service message of some sort.

* Offer additional services (through the silent…or public… partnership of networking colleagues).

* Be memorable: be the only one who always brings Krispy Kremes to clients.

Service

* Recognize a client or referral group colleague who’s given you the most referrals, with a “certificate” or through publicity.

* Take at least one client out for coffee or lunch per month (and for special occasions, take them out to dinner!).

* Serve on a civic committee or board.

* Focus on better service to fewer clients; build stronger relationships toward more sustained revenue.

* Visit your clients at their office more often.

Guerrilla Strategies

* Send an inexpensive throwaway camera to a valued client or high-chance prospect with the message “Picture us together…”

* Put a compelling flyer in the newspaper boxes of an exclusive neighborhood (trite, but can be effective).

* Arrange to have your business card sitting on the retail counter of an affinity-based business, i.e. website developer at Mail Boxes, etc.

* Send something gimmicky to a prospect, i.e. a plastic foot prop wearing a shoe (“Now that I’ve got my foot in the door…”).

* Barter…which can lead to added client base. (More on that in another issue..)

Networking

* Join your clients’ groups/associations.

* Send newspaper clippings of news relevant to clients’ businesses.

* Host an event or office party; create the “reason” for it – i.e. St. Bart’s Independence Day; National Office Cubicle Day.

* Volunteer for a favorite cause or charity.

* Create your own networking group specific to your industry; share prospecting based on mutual…or individual…strengths.

We certainly haven’t covered the waterfront. But if these ideas have at least inspired you to get out on the dock and try casting a net or two out there, we’ve done our public service for the month.

Until the first Tuesday of next month when we come roaring out of the gate – NCAA Champs UNC Tar Heels-style – with another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips, have a blessed Easter or Passover.

And regardless of which holiday you celebrate, enjoy The Ten Commandments for the nine zillionth time.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

Getting Through This Mess...While Spending Less

2009-02-27T14:15:00.019-05:00

Back in January, I opened the new year’s volume of NYUMT by offering “resolutions” to market and promote yourself, one resolution per month, each one a different way to make an impact with your customers.

Now that economic conditions are that much more critical, the need to market is no less critical. But there are ways to manage the process, without breaking your own bank.

Welcome to the March edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

I recently gave a talk to a combined audience of the two leading event planners associations in town -- the International Special Events Society (ISES) http://www.isescharlotte.com/ and the National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) http://www.charlottenace.com/ Now, while my association with these associations is linked to my capabilities as a professional caricaturist ( http://www.caricaturesbyjoel.com/ ), I was given appreciable opportunity to share with them my views as “the marketing guy.”

And, after all, just about all companies can benefit from a good pep talk on marketing. (With the apparent exceptions being the Exxons and Halliburtons of the world…).

The title of the talk was “10 Ways to Market Yourself Without Using Ads, TV, Radio, Billboards or even Brochures”

Let’s go over the first 5, not necessarily in chronology of importance…

Publicity

· What’s new with your company? New product/service? – send an article out to the press.

· What’s new with you? If giving a talk or staging an event, send out an article.

· With permission, write about a client; use it as case study about your business.

· Send out a compelling photo with caption…from unusual vacation or interesting business trip, etc.

· Create an awards program for a worthy cause dear to you.

Seminars

· Practice speaking by joining Toastmasters or other business/fraternal organizations.

· Invite clients and prospects to a talk or dialogue at local subdivision clubhouse.

· Join a local Chamber – even surrounding suburbs – and get on the speakers list.

· Ask to speak at your next industry association convention (state or national).

· Co-sponsor (and split the costs of) a seminar with a related industry colleague…i.e. insurance agent with financial planner; printer with website pro.

Trade Shows/Special Events

· Exhibit at a local trade show; share a booth with a colleague to control costs.

· Don’t exhibit at a local trade show; instead, walk the aisles and network freely among visitors and other exhibitors.

· Submit an article to appear in the trade show literature.

· Create a themed event at a local restaurant, inviting a specific prospect clientele.

· Co-sponsor a charitable event (golf outing, art exhibit, silent auction, etc.).

Promotions

· E-mail a trivia-type question to clients/prospects; the first to answer correctly gets a free gift.

· Is there a movie presently playing that somehow touches on your profession? Tie in free tickets to clients. (“Slumdog Millionaire” for, ahem, bankers and financial consultants..?)

· Coffee mugs, water bottles and pens are cliché; use an item actually relevant to your business.

· Add a coupon for your services to a Welcome Wagon program.

· Promote your business through Val-Pak or Money Mailer coupon/flyers.

Newsletters

· Newsletters can be any size; send out a postcard with news, tips, maxims, etc.

· Newsletters can be e-mailed (“e-zines” such as this one) with all the info, including graphics…

· Co-op with another business that, for instance, could pay for printing through their advertising in it.

· Add an ongoing “newsletter” segment to your website that stays timely.

· Blog. Or vlog (the video version...).

Next month, we’ll go over the remaining five ways to market yourself without spending through customarily big ticket vehicles.

In the meantime, try to keep smiling. People want to do business with those who remain positive.

And I will positively plan on being here again the first Tuesday of next month with another macroeconomic view from “Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.”

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

And from the "What-Alternate-Universe-Bizarro-World-Are-They-In?" Dept.: TV commercials that show cars speeding along on a highway, on a country road, on a city street. The operative word being "speeding." Like, really speeding...

"This Frenchman walks into a bar..."

2009-02-03T07:23:00.006-05:00

Every now and then, I like to turn over this space to the musings and pontifications of friends, colleagues and clients on the art, the science…the alchemy…of marketing. From their personal perspectives.

Welcome to the post-Super Bowl, pre-Spring Training edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Philippe Le Baron is the founder and president of LB4G Consulting, Inc., dedicated to sales productivity through realizing the potential of sales managers and their teams.

Philippe has over 20 years experience in consulting, sales, sales management and sales productivity management on behalf of American corporate business throughout Europe.

During this time, the French businessman has designed his own programs and workshops,addressing business cultures as diverse as the US, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Israel, Russia, Switzerland, and Austria.

To adapt his consultative approach to everyone, Philippe developed a global-ready methodology that he has brought to America. http://www.lb4gconsulting.com/

So what approach is Philippe taking these days to help get the message out on his business?

How about…Stand-Up Comedy!

“When I arrived in Charlotte from France about two years ago my sales productivity services were as new to the area as my accent was.

“As I built my American operations locally, I went to market with networking, surface mailing, email marketing, web presence, brochures, flyers, cold calling, you name it. Since my business is very much based on an ‘education’ sale, as opposed to a pure ‘pain’ sale, I quickly realized that earning significant mind share was not easily achieved unless I could quickly talk to a lot of people at the same time to maximize ‘education’ effectiveness.

“Workshops, seminars, talks became my main route to market, and I got my first referrals from these interactions. It also helped me position my services faster to an audience I had not anticipated – the small business owners market.

“Last summer I pushed the exercise to its limits. Willing to develop myself further, and in the search for the best "Toastmaster"-type training I could find, I was attracted by a workshop run by the International House in Charlotte, titled 8 Weeks to Become a Stand-Up Comedian. My initial sense was ‘Let's try this – if I can do it, I can give any public speech anywhere.’

“This took me a little further past my comfort zone than I had anticipated, but I have now performed six times at such Charlotte area venues as International House, Matthews Comedy Zone, Alive in NODA. It also has opened new horizons for my business. Not that I intend to make a living from this (even though I did earn a few bucks from my last performance), but I get called on now for corporate presentations and kickoffs, where the experience as a stand up is actually a plus to my ‘serious business’ pitch. After all, sales people and sales managers can always use a little humor to help them look at themselves, and embrace change faster.

“Last but not least, I found that there were similarities between stand-up and sales management: there is an art piece to it, and there is a science piece to it. And there is actually a process to making people laugh (as one who was schooled as an engineer, I love processes).

“There is a setup: a topic, an attitude and a premise that will, when worded right, lead to a joke that should get laughs...if you are funny (that's the art piece). The same way great sales managers blend their art of managing sales people with the science of sales force productivity.

“I now use both skills and content to resonate with my target audience. It does get my name out there too. It stretches one to new levels. And if by standing in front of an audience you are not otherwise scared s*#%-less – pardon my French – it can be fun too...”

Join us again the first Tuesday of next month for more shtick from Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

Resolutions

2009-01-05T14:33:00.004-05:00

For the last several years, I’ve opened the January edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management with proposed Resolutions for the New Year. (And here we are -- Volume 7, Number1 -- Wow!)

Since resolutions, like advertising itself, tend to make an impact only when repeated…and repeated…and repeated…I figured I’d once again give a nod to this time-honored tradition.

In no particular order, then, here are 12 Resolutions, one for each month, for you to consider effecting in 2009:

Guerilla Marketing: Think outside the box for ways to promote yourself. There are rules. And then sometimes you know what they say about rules...

Networking: Do more, by joining more…networks that is (associations, fraternal organizations, fellow hobbyists, etc.). Marketing yourself continues to be a numbers game…

Publicity: Toot your own horn – no one else knows your “key” as well as you do…

Web site: If it’s been a while since you’ve “Spring-cleaned” your site – updating and streamlining – maybe now’s the time to have at it. And not wait, by the way, until Spring…

Seminars: Think you know it all?? Heck, maybe you do! – at least as far as certain audiences to whom you would speak are concerned, and the new market opportunities they might present to you…

Newsletters: Share your ideas, broaden your constituency – send out industry-relevant information either as hard copy…or electronically (such as what you’re presently reading)…

Trade Shows: Go to them, be in them, mingle within them, write a program article for them…

Event Marketing: Promote a cause, sponsor a charity, have an Open House – it’s good P.R. by “humanizing” your business…

The Newspaper: Remember that old-fashioned thing, for which the death knell has been sounding for years? For ideas, for client contact opportunities, for business references…don’t rely on the 11:00 PM News. Read the newspaper…

Greeting Cards: It doesn’t have to be Christmas to send them. Get your name out year-round, with Valentine’s Day, July 4th, Arbor Day – whatever! – as an excuse to stay top of mind with clients and colleagues….

Postcards: Along with greeting cards, postcards are a fast, convenient, economical way to let people know about your business (think realtors, financial planners, etc.)…

JDK Marketing Communications Management: Yeah, I know, I “cheated” on this last one. But how else are you going to be able to effectively take care of the previous 11 resolutions, without first resolving to contact yours truly…?

Have a happy, healthy and prosperous 2009. And we’ll see you again the first Tuesday of next month with another Auld Lang Syne rendition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

…And from the “Just Wondering” Dept.: This past holiday season, as usual, the radio airwaves were filled with Christmas standards sung by the likes of Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, Andy Williams, Ella Fitzgerald, et al. Since it was primarily the rock and country stations that played them, I was Just Wondering…if these timeless, iconic artists are good enough to play at Christmas time, why aren’t they good enough to be played on these same stations throughout the year?

(Yeah, right.)

The Gift of Gifting

2008-12-01T18:18:00.003-05:00

‘Tis the season to be giving, whether it’s Christmas or Hanukkah. Talking business gifting here, not charitable donations. Though the latter is something that, thankfully, remains a stalwart of our corporate as well as civic culture, I sometimes wonder if some of us haven’t forsaken the tradition of thanking our clients for their business, with a tangible token of our appreciation.

Welcome to this year’s last installment of Not Your Usual marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

According to Rosanne J. Thomas, Certified Etiquette and Protocol Consultant, “a business gift is a powerful tool, and one not to be overlooked. Study after study shows that a thoughtfully selected and presented gift of high quality and taste can indeed help cement relationships with customers and employees alike.”

I don’t have empirical evidence of this, but I sense that many of my counterparts in the service industry think business gifting is somehow no longer appropriate. Not cool. Of another era, not of these times. Kind of like the three martini lunch. More like something out of TV’s homage to the Madison Avenue era of the ‘60s, “Mad Men.”

Call me old-fashioned – but I’ve always liked the idea. Maybe it’s my Dad’s influence when occasionally he took me as a child on his rounds throughout New York City thanking his own marketing clients. I think it makes a defining statement about yourself and your character. Sort of like a strong handshake. Here’s author Alex Palmer’s take, whose article “A Giving Spirit” is in this past November’s issue of Incentive magazine:

“A study released by the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) at the end of September found that 80 percent of the sales and marketing executives who responded classify themselves as gift givers. The study reflected that relationship building was the most commonly cited reason for givers, with 70 percent giving ‘to thank customers,’ and 66 percent giving ‘to build goodwill.’

…(according to Steve Slagle, president and CEO of PPAI)…’It’s not about price. There are certainly products in this industry that have higher perceived value than others, but often if it’s a thoughtful gift – whether it’s $5 or $10 – it will have impact for the individual.’”

Palmer goes on to quote another expert in the industry who further takes a “green” approach: “’Gifts that are better for the environment (i.e. biodegradable or recyclable items) say a positive thing about the giver.’”

I’ve got a lucky 13 on my list of clients who I especially wish to thank for their “contributions” to my bottom line this past year; I’ve also got my annual New Year’s “chochke” that many of you will be receiving in the next few weeks.

Who will you be thanking this holiday season?

Happy Holidays and see you again the first Tuesday in the New Year for Volume 7(!), Opus 1, of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

What's your "EQ?"

2008-11-03T14:18:00.003-05:00

I enthusiastically assert that I am one of the few people I know who doesn’t dread Sunday night.

That’s because I really enjoy what I do – whether it’s the marketing and advertising hat I wear, or that of the caricature artist (reminder: holiday parties are coming up!), it’s fun to get the old creative juices flowing and keep that right side of the brain percolating.

I get to work with graphic designers, photographers, web developers, printers, media people on occasion (even they have “creative” ideas)…and, for the most part, clients who are willing to try something arresting and engaging.

I mention this – which, frankly has nothing to do with talent but everything to do with attitude and mindset – because every now and then I run across folks who give their 30-second elevator speech at networking groups with a dulled indifference that is disappointing if not downright discouraging.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Anyway, “enthusiasm” is something that marketing guru Robert Middleton -- http://www.actionplan.com/ -- seems to find in short supply. And that can have dire consequences for those out there marketing their business. Like, er, um, everyone…

“Look at some of the synonyms for enthusiasm,” he writes in a recent entry from his weekly e-zine (edited for brevity):

“Keenness, ardor, fervor, passion, zeal, zest, gusto, energy, verve, inspiration, excitement, vigor, fire, spirit, avidity, devotion, motivation, commitment, willingness, earnestness. ”

"What can you do to generate (enthusiasm) in a society that's become increasingly skeptical, let alone downright cynical?

“1. Fall in love with good ideas. (I was convinced that the next step in my business) was to offer programs at graduated levels. It took me five months to implement it, but the idea took hold and never let go.

"2. Trust your inner voice. If you feel you can do something, feed that feeling. You feed your enthusiasm by sharing your ideas with like-minded, supportive people who are just as enthusiastic about their ideas.

"3. Act as if. I used to call this ‘fake it until you make it.’ When you exhibit enthusiasm, it's contagious and you can become addicted to it. I can certainly think of worse addictions!

“4. Question your unenthusiastic attitudes. When we're feeling apathetic, bored, disinterested, hesitant, stagnant, or fearful, it's useful to ask, ‘What would I have to believe to feel that way?’ Often it's something like: ‘If I really went for it 100% I might fail,’ or ‘I really don't make a difference anyway.’ Are those thoughts true? Probably not.

"5. Take on a huge project. Think of Kennedy's speech: ‘We choose to go to the moon in this decade, not because it is easy, but because it is hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win.’”

Okay, this soap box is getting kind of rickety; I better get off and save it for another time. Such as the first Tuesday of next month, for another enthusiastic shout-out of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

A Tale of Two Press Releases

2008-10-07T11:06:00.002-04:00

I wrote and distributed two different press releases this past month for two different clients. One was for a charitable event, singular in its cause and focus. The other was for a restaurant, touting everything they offered under the sun.

Guess which one got the most play.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Now, who knows – especially here in Charlotte, which tends to favor charitable causes – maybe the media has more of a thing for “good works” than work that tastes good. But I have a sneaking suspicion that a single subject (accent on the modifier “single”) resonated more quickly and more succinctly with more media than the multiple items implied in the subject line in the e-mail head of the restaurant story. Special appetizers, Karaoke Night, Happy Hours, family-friendly but singles are welcome…not quite “TMI,” but still “too much information!”

I remember attending a marketing communications seminar where the speaker held two props. One was a square “bed” of small spikes. The other was another small square, but containing only one spike. When the speaker took a sheet of paper and tried to run it through the many spikes, the sheet did little more than crease at the points where they hit.

When he took the same sheet of paper and came down on the single spike, the sheet was impaled clean through.

In the fast-paced world of trying to get your advertising or publicity message through to you’re A.D.D.-like audience, the point is… get to one. And best to get to one point only.

My restaurant client wanted to consolidate his funds and assign only one press release that covered virtually everything they offered at the place. Though I made an effort to dissuade him and save each item for a separate release, I understood and respected his wishes.

Maybe next time.

And maybe next month, first Tuesday, you’ll join me again for another single subject take of “Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.”

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

From the “Greening with Envy” Dept.: Go into a public lavatory these days, and the faucet is electronic-eye automated, as is the paper towel dispenser. But you have to manually press the soap dispenser…

Teacher's Pet

2008-09-01T18:04:00.003-04:00

It’s September. Which means it’s time for the young’uns to go back to school. Which further reminds us that there’s still plenty for us all to learn. About a year and a half ago, I devoted this space to discussing the value of subscribing online to the wizened commentary of some pretty sharp people who know their stuff about marketing.

What held true then holds true today. As much of schoolwork is repetition, to get the points across, here’s that column again.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Years ago, when I wrote advertising copy at Royal Insurance, we created an ad for Royal to appear in a trade publication representing the insurance industry for recent college grads looking to break into the field. So I wrote the “twisty” headline: “Now that you’ve got your degree, come get an education.” The idea being that there’s nothing like the “real-world” know-how one can get on the job as opposed to the theory of the class room.

I’m reminded of that line as, thirty years later, I’m still learning stuff…even as I dispense my own pearls of wisdom from this lofty seat of experience.

No doubt many of you subscribe to your own industry-related electronic newsletters, but since this one is devoted to marketing…and, after all, regardless of your industry, you won’t get too far without marketing…I thought I’d share these resources with you.

Alexandria Brown writes all about e-zines – how to write them, how to use them -- from her self-anointed website: http://www.ezinequeen.com/

The ClickZ Network “is the largest resource of interactive marketing news, information, commentary, advice, opinion, research, and reference in the world.” Which, for my interest, also deals with e-mail marketing. You can subscribe to their periodic info at: http://www.clickz.com/

Who in the Charlotte area hasn’t heard of Jeffrey Gitomer? For advice on how to score “the sale,” subscribe to him at: http://www.salescaffeine.com/

Perhaps my own personal favorite is the advice on a multitude of pertinent topics rendered weekly from Robert Middleton, a West Coast marketing guru who can be reached by typing in: http://www.actionplan.com/

Since I also get involved in publicity for clients, writing and placing press releases, I can still learn a thing or two from Joan Stewart’s http://www.publicityhound.com/

There you have it – not everyone in marketing, but a good enough cross-section to at least keep yours truly “dangerous.” Maybe you too?

In the meantime, see you the first Tuesday of next month with another postage-paid dollop of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

…And from the You-Wanna-Run-That-By-Me-Again Dept:

I ate at a “Just Fresh” recently. There were plastic flowers on the table.

Massaging the Subject Line

2008-08-05T07:24:00.005-04:00

Among the services we provide here at the worldwide headquarters of JDK Marketing Communications Management is the writing of press releases.

To that end, I’m working on a major publicity campaign for my client, Massage Envy, the nation’s leading massage therapy clinic available to the public. Massage Envy is partnering with Susan G. Komen for the Cure to stage “Massage for the Cure” at all 18 of their clinics throughout North Carolina, all day September 15. (More info to come next month, but for now you can go to: http://massageenvy.com/massage-for-the-cure.aspx )

Of course, sending out press releases these days is usually done through e-mail. Which means catching the attention of the reader – likely the jaundiced eye of the media – with a compelling enough headline in the subject box to get the recipient to open it.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Here’s a fascinating take, excerpted here, on the craft of subject headline writing that appeared recently in The New York Times. Joanne Kaufman is the author.

“’P.R. people want to invest time in things that are going to get picked up, so they try to put something to the ‘who cares?’ and ‘so what?’ test,” said Kate Robins, a longtime public relations consultant. 'If you say something is first, most, fastest, tallest — that’s likely to get attention. If you can use the words like ‘money,’ ‘fat,’ ‘cancer’ or ‘sex,’ you’re likely to get some ink in the general audience media.'

“David Seaman, a P.R. stunt planner and the author of a book to be published in October, ‘Dirty Little Secrets of Buzz,’ is a proponent of ‘safe,’ ‘easy’ ‘secret,’ ‘trick’ and ‘breaking’ because they suggest that something is new and fresh, he said.

“The words that attract media attention change with the times. ‘Anything that speaks to long-term health risks is good these days, because there is a belief that there’s a lot of stuff out there harming us, from the cellphone on down,’ Mr. Adamson said. David B. Armon, the president of PR Newswire, a distribution service for public relations professionals, likens writing a news release to writing a headline for the front page of a newspaper: every word has to do heavy lifting.

“’It’s a lot more scientific than it used to be,’ Mr. Armon said, ‘because you’re not just trying to get media pickup, but to get search engine attention.’

“To aid in this endeavor, PR Newswire offers its members a so-called keyword density tool. “It lets you know the words someone would have to type into a search engine for your particular press release to be found, and helps put your release at the top of the search engine,” Mr. Armon said.

“’Green’ and ‘environment’ are huge right now, he said, as is ‘foreclosure.’ ‘We’ve done 412 press releases that incorporate that word so far in ’08, up from 261 last year.’ For the record, Mr. Armon added, the use of the word “toxic’ in news releases is up 5 ‘percent.

“Perhaps because many people in public relations are former journalists, they know what grates on the Fourth Estate. Mr. Gable, who was once the business editor of The San Diego Union, has compiled a list of words that will do a news release no good whatsoever, like ‘solutions,’ ‘leading edge,’ ‘cutting edge,’ ‘state of the art,’ ‘mission critical,’ and ‘turnkey.’

“Ken Sunshine, the head of a P.R. firm in Manhattan, said he thought the media had an institutional bias against ‘hype-y terms’ like ‘world renowned’ and ‘once in a lifetime,’ which he studiously avoids putting in his news releases. ‘But ‘unique’ is fine,’ he said, ‘if something really is unique.’ “

Well, we think we’re unique. So watch for this column again -- in the subject line, of course -- the first Tuesday of next month, for another PR-tinged edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

Cookin' With Gas

2008-06-30T11:27:00.006-04:00

Who knew chochkes would have such cachet?

Ad specialties are apparently – if not bigger and better than ever before – more popular than ever before.

Welcome to the pre-fireworks edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management

According to The Detroit News:

“The Advertising Specialty Institute, the largest media and marketing organization serving the advertising specialty industry, announced…results of its annual advertising specialties sales analysis indicating that industry revenues reached $19.6 billion in 2007 - up 5.4 percent from 2006 and a new record.”

Now check this out:

“Spending on advertising specialties, or promotional products - items and incentives branded with a company logo or marketing message - was 83% greater than radio advertising, 73% greater than Internet display ads and nearly five times larger than outdoor advertising for the same period. Industry increases also outpaced the 2.2% growth rate for the United States GDP.
"In today's climate of increasing economic uncertainty, purchasing decisions for advertising and marketing are being scrutinized closely," said (a company spokesperson). "Advertising specialties are a relatively safe advertising investment and are nearly recession-proof, because they provide a proven high return-on-investment at a low cost and have a lasting impact on target audiences.

"Promotional products offer an opportunity to creatively advertise a company or product," said Carol Constantino, president of Noteworthy Company. "Since the life span of a promotional product extends beyond a conventional ad, savvy marketers recognize value and ultimately extend their advertising dollars to reinforce an ad campaign with the diverse product lines that our industry offers."

Then comes this additional news item from the paper:

“A café…is doing it. So is a (local) hotel, a carmaker, an awning seller and a national golf club company. Even the American Red Cross is getting in on today's hottest giveaway gig -- free gasoline.

“With the price of gas shooting up more than 30 percent in the past year and now stuck above $4 a gallon, businesses are turning to the gas card as a way to get consumers' attention and increase sales. Business owners say they know free gas isn't necessarily the deciding factor for patrons looking to buy their wares or services, but they believe it makes people more inclined to stop and take a look.

"It's pushing our hot button activators," said Dave Regan, an advertising instructor at Michigan State University. "We're still looking for that deal -- for that break -- on gas."
Other types of money-saving promotions, such as discounts and rebates, have lost their luster because their novelty has worn off, he said.

"You've seen it, done it and used it. It's old." Gas cards, on the other hand, "stand out as something new," Regan said.

"On top of that, "people hate to spend their money on gas," said Richard Divine, instructor of marketing and hospitality services at Central Michigan University. "Gas cards may be more effective than saying 'I'm going to give you $4 off.' Businesses are putting a value on the savings they're giving you."

Hmmm…ad specialties humming along, and gas cards helping to “drive” them. A “not your usual marketing tip”…or something that may be more mainstream than we all realize? Either way, something to think about putting in your “tank” the next time you consider ways of promoting your services.

See you again the first Tuesday of next month for another sizzling-hot-for-summer “Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.”

Joel Kweskin
http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

Travelogue

2008-06-02T18:23:00.004-04:00

The family leaves for Denver this week to attend my son’s graduation ceremony. Graduation, that is, with a Master’s degree in International Studies from the University of Denver.

Not that this is a vacation, per se, but in part we’ll turn it into one by visiting the sights, maybe even take in the defending National League Champion Colorado Rockies game (though the only thing they seem to be defending this year is last place…)

Welcome to the June edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Travel this time of year in general gets me to thinking about summer vacations. Have you scheduled yours yet? If so, you might want to consider some observations from a column I posted on NYUMT four years ago.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My good buddy Jeff Klein loves to collect brochures from his family vacations around the country. I mean, this guy’s stash could fill practically every slot in a motel’s display rack. He does it because they provide pictorial memories of the good times traveled.

I’d do it because it represents great ideas for marketing my clients.

It’s the unofficial beginning of summer – which to most of us, will mean vacations. Since my business is fundamentally steeped in the written word and visual representation, I’m always drawn to commercials, ads, billboards…and brochures.

So when I vacation by visiting some historical or famous natural site, then stay over at a neighboring motel, I too look for the brochures. But I look for them – and at them – because many times they have some appealing elements that I can perhaps apply to the needs of my clients. (In fact, I’ve got one in mind right now to promote yours truly…)

Maybe it’s the layout of the piece. The number of panels or its unusual configuration. How it folds. Is it a horizontal narrative, or does it read vertically. Maybe it’s the fonts used. Maybe it’s a witty or otherwise compelling turn of phrase in the copy. Maybe it’s the unusual treatment of the photos, or it’s the use of illustration or cartoons. Maybe there’s a uniquely designed map as the centerpiece. Maybe a customized die cut gives it a “personality” found nowhere else.

I was at an art gallery in Charleston not long ago, and I picked up a brochure that had the most extraordinary layout folds I had ever seen…even though it had “:emerged” from a standard (when flat) 8.5” x 11” sheet of paper. It was just a stunning, unusual looking piece practically transcending the contents within it (perhaps not so extraordinary, though, when you realize it represented the creative milieu of different artists and their works).

Now although I’m writing this as it relates to my ongoing personal research, let me suggest that you consider the “hidden treasure” you may yourself discover when you travel this summer. Is there some cool-looking pamphlet or brochure you may come across that can inspire you to emulate it for your own promotional needs?

Frankly, whether you elect to work with me or someone else on your marketing materials, it’s always welcomed when you’ve done a little research on your own and show your marketing guy/girl, “I think this is pretty neat; can we do something like it?”

And, without compromising any copyright laws, chances are we can.

See you again the first Tuesday of next month, for another adventurous edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Joel Kweskin
www.jdkmarketing.biz

An Old Baseball Adage

2008-05-05T23:48:00.014-04:00

It’s baseball season, and after just listening on XM radio (love the XM) to my favorite team go down to their fifth straight defeat (get a hold of yourself, Joel, it's a long season...), I'm reminded of a column I fungo'd out to my readers a few seasons back that's still topical today.

Welcome to the National Pastime edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Here's the gist of that previous article:

There was a player around the turn of the century named Wee Willie Keeler. Whenever Willie would step to the plate, the chant would ring out, “Hit’em where they ain’t!” The meaning was simplistically clear: hit the ball where the fielders WEREN’T positioned, to improve the chances for getting a base hit.

What if, metaphorically speaking, you could “hit” your target markets…where your competition “ain’t?”

Most businesses – however small or large – tend to market themselves through the “standard” avenues…the local newspaper, the local weekly, the local regional, radio, TV. And “buckshot” mailings to one’s database of clients, colleagues and friends. Chances are that your industry counterparts are doing mostly that same thing.

Maybe the next time you’re “at bat,” consider going – pardon the pun – farther afield. That is, think about hitting those markets not just among your primary audience but also to the outer periphery of your “spheres of influence.”

A CPA, for instance – whose services are needed by virtually everyone – can make herself the go-to professional with the local remodelers trade association. A chiropractor might want to approach the public library system (think of all that stretching and bending all day long by the staff just to put books away) with clinics exclusively for that organization. A sometime caricature artist might join a wedding and event planners organization to be their unique source of party entertainment. (Hey wait a minute, that's me..!)

This concept goes beyond “target marketing,” though it certainly fits within the category. It’s applying what it is you do to the needs of a market that may not always be that obvious a target.

Maybe there’s a hobby you have, or a weekend passion you love, that can be parlayed into a business opportunity -- by providing your services to fellow aficionados. Do these enthusiasts have associations? Do they have meetings? Do they have means, i.e. literature or promotional materials, by which they communicate with one another…and in which you can contribute an ad or, better yet, an informative article?

Next time you grab that metaphorical bat and stand in the box…you may want to think outside of it every now and then. And hit’em where they ain’t.

See you again the first Tuesday of next month, with another slugging edition of Not Your Usual Marketing tips.

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

Continuing Ed

2008-03-31T16:28:00.028-04:00

Welcome to the April edition of “Not Your Usual Marketing Tips” from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

One of the great things about the Internet is the opportunity for a kind of “continuing ed” in one’s chosen field or industry.

I’ve discussed, in the past, the benefits of subscribing to certain e-zines – “electronic magazines” or newsletters – from those I consider true marketing gurus. They’ve got a lot of knowledge to impart, and some of that knowledge every now and then takes the form of a “tele-seminar” they put on. I listened to one just last week, and there was some great stuff in it (part of its greatness was it was free!)

Alexandria Brown, the self-anointed “Queen of the E-Zine” did a two-night series on the benefits of trotting out an electronic publication – such as what you’re reading right now – for reasons too numerous to mention here. (You can go right to the source, though, to learn more at http://alexandriabrown.com/ )

One of the notions she puts forth is that, in the seemingly impersonal world of business, one can communicate through the clutter with a more “personalized” approach. Seasoning your message, now and then, with little dollops of info on yourself, your achievements, even stuff on your family.

So, here goes: “My” movie opens later this week (April 4).

Leatherheads is the new George Clooney screwball comedy that embraces the early days of pro football (1925) as a colorful backdrop to a romantic triangle with co-stars Renee Zelwegger and The Office’s John Krasinski.

“My” movie?? Well, sure…after all, I'm in it. As an extra. Actually, more than an extra. I played the role of Assistant Coach of the Chicago Buffalos, the team Clooney’s Duluth Bulldogs play in the dramatic denouement-revealing game at the end of the film.

So if anyone out there in e-zine land is interested in reading more about my adventures on the film set – taking direction from George, for example – well, I won’t take up any more sacrosanct space in this missive…but you can access it here in a fun website created by another amateur thespian who also took part in the film: http://www.theleatherheads.com/KweskinJoel.html

(Then check out the Photo Album section and go to Album 5 and scroll down to see a caricature I did…which was finally presented to our star this past week when he made his whistle stopping tour through Salisbury, NC.)

I’m not sure I know what all this “personal” stuff through my e-zine is supposed to do. But, I suppose if it gets people talking either about me or to me, a little PR in my direction can’t hurt, right?

And if I can assist you, or anyone you know, with promotional needs – self or otherwise – let me strap on my leatherhead and get on it!

In the meantime, let’s huddle again the first Tuesday of next month for another bone crushing edition of “Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.”

Joel Kweskin

http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/

What Is Your USP?

2008-03-04T13:32:00.005-05:00

What's your USP?

And, no, it has nothing to do with the US Postal Service.

It’s your “Unique Selling Proposition.” Or substitute the word Proposition with Proposal or Point.

Any way you say it, it’s what those three words say about your business that, theoretically, no one else can say.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Simply stated, your USP should – in your marketing materials, position papers, sales letters, perhaps even your slogan – reflect the contention that what you sell is unique, something your competition cannot or chooses not to promote…culminating in the decision by your customer to act by exploring and/or purchasing your product or service.

You may remember USP from Marketing 101. But, since Spring Training has begun this month down in Florida and Arizona, I’m reminded that it’s occasionally a good thing to re-familiarize oneself with the “fundamentals.”

Wikepedia further explains USP as a “marketing concept that was first proposed as a theory to explain a pattern among successful advertising campaigns (of the 1940s and 1950s). It states that such campaigns made unique propositions to the customer and that this convinced them to switch brands.

“The term was invented by Rosser Reeves (an account executive with former independent ad agency giant) Ted Bates & Company. Today the term is used in other fields or just casually to refer to any aspect of an object that differentiates it from similar objects…A number of businesses and corporations currently use USPs as a basis for their marketing campaigns.”

Jay Abraham, with a string of successful books on the “guerilla” ways of marketing, opines that, “Even while you creatively imitate others, remember that it's also important to be different. Distinguish your business or practice from all the rest. Make your enterprise special in the eyes of your customer or client. A USP is that distinct and appealing idea that sets you and your business, or practice, favorably apart from every other generic competitor.”

BusinessTown.com has a little more “tough love” message for you: “There may be very little difference between your product and your competitors’. But if you can't find a way to communicate uniqueness and connect it to a need of your target, you might as well quit fighting your competition and sell out to them.

“There are many different ways to stake out a position. Just remember, your position reflects your unique selling proposition, and it is what makes your offering more valuable to your customers than what's being offered by your competition.”

No doubt by now you may have taken a cold, hard look at what you do for a living and thought. “but my business is really no different than others in this field.”

That’s the challenge. But it’s not unmeet-able. There are things about your business you may not be able to see – the old “forest for the trees” deal. And that’s where it may take a professional marketing firm (ahem!) to help adjust your glasses for you…

And help truly, and memorably, distinguish you vis-à-vis your competition.

If you haven't done so by now, maybe it’s time you worked on your USP...ASAP.

Hope to chat you up again the first Tuesday of next month with another initials-laden serving of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

The "R" Word

2008-02-04T11:22:00.000-05:00

If you, like a good number of your friends, neighbors and – perhaps more importantly – your business associates, subscribe to the notion that our economy is either approaching or already in the throes of a recession, take a deep breath. Maybe we need to change the “R” word to the “O” word.

As in “Opportunity.”

Welcome to the February edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

I’m no economist, but I have seen The Ways of Things in my thirty-plus years of doing business, both on the corporate and service-provider sides. Think Stock Market. To re-paraphrase Isaac Newton, what goes down…must eventually go back up.

Here are some heartening observations I’ve gleaned lately by fellow marketing pundits.

Charlie Elberson, Wray Ward Laseter VP of Brand Development, notes in his blog:

“Thriving in hard times is especially gratifying (and certainly more attention-getting) because few can do it. Wisdom, courage, smarts – along with an ability to grasp new realities – these are prerequisites to getting through down times on top. Most important is a steely-eyed commitment to a plan.”

Among which are:

“• Increase share of mind. Increasing brand presence during a recession yields disproportionate increases in share of market. Why? You’re buying real estate in buyers’ minds while the competition is withdrawn. Smart.

• Simplify your world. Bet that your competitors will reduce the scale of their programs but not the scope, they’ll do less of everything. Now is a great time to do a few things really, really well.

• Get ready for the Big I (major initiative). Good times, like the bad, have a way of sneaking up on us. Start getting ready now to have a major initiative (or two) all set to go for when things improve.

Down time is a smart time to lay the groundwork for greater success tomorrow. When the sun’ll come out.”

Robert Midddleton, Internet-based marketing coach, in his weekly e-zine opines:

“Certain words trigger certain feelings. We hear the word recession in the media over and over, and each time it triggers a little fear, a little uncertainty. Before you know it, many people are making the recession a self-fulfilling prophecy.

“The economy is experiencing a bout of flu. But like the flu, it will eventually pass with minimal side effects. If you look at it like that, no problem. You take some precautions, but you don't lapse into hopelessness and despair. You can treat this like a wake up call. You, personally, can make a difference for you, your family and business. You can choose what you think and do. You can take creative action.

"Part of this is taking control of your marketing. You can't leave it to chance anymore. Those who practice proven marketing strategies will attract more business than those who don't - especially when times are tight. Don't let yourself be dragged down by talk of a recession. You can use a downturn as an opportunity to sharpen your marketing skills.”

Then again, you can always heed the words of Steve Forbes, publisher of the iconic business magazine that bears his late father’s name. When asked recently in an interview with The Charlotte Observer, are we headed into a recession, he answered:

“No. As a matter of fact, after the first quarter, the economy should surprise people with its strength. The Federal Reserve is still pumping up boatloads of money. The second and third quarters should come in around 2.5 and 3 percent (GDP growth). Next year I think we’re going to have problems, because the Fed can’t keep inflating, but for now the world is not coming to an end.”

There, Grumpy. Are you smiling yet..?

Check this space again the first Tuesday of next month for another boatload of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

Just Wondering Department: Great game Sunday. But watching all those commercials at $2.7 million a pop, I couldn’t help but think – with much talk during this presidential race period about issues like poverty and outrageous health care costs – wouldn’t just one of those advertisers have made quite a PR statement by telling the public that they planned NOT to advertise on the Super Bowl and instead were taking that money and making a “Super” contribution to an appropriate charity/charities to help those in need..?

Resolutions

2008-01-01T16:30:00.000-05:00

Welcome to Not Your Usual Marketing Tips -- your Online Marketing Ideas and Commentary Column Official Sponsor of 2008.

There, I’ve now claimed the first commercial “ownership” of a Year…

It’s the first month, and that begs the question: have you made your New Year’s resolutions yet? I mean from a marketing, advertising and promoting standpoint. (I could care less if you’ve vowed to lose weight; trust me, it’ll only come back by this time next year anyway…)

Since offering up this specific column thrice before, it’s worn well as universal and timeless commentary. So, as they say, if it ain’t broke…
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There’s a great scene in an old “Seinfeld” episode where Jerry has telephoned in reservations for a car rental. Except that when he arrives to pick up the car, he’s told there are none to be had. The girl at the counter explains that, for whatever bureaucratic reason, his rental was released to someone else. In his customary exasperated manner, Jerry then tries to “educate” her -- that although “it’s your business to MAKE the reservation…you also have to be able to HOLD the reservation..!”

It’s January of a New Year. From a marketing standpoint, presuming you’ve MADE your New Year’s resolutions, are you planning to actually HOLD them?

In no particular order, consider these 12 Resolutions for 2008 – one per month – vowing to proactively engage in at least one of them:

Guerilla Marketing: Think outside the box for ways to promote yourself. There are rules…and sometimes there are no rules.

Networking: Do more, by joining more…networks that is (associations, fraternal organizations, fellow hobbyists, etc.)

Publicity: Toot your own horn through such means as press releases; even if you think you’ve got nothing new to say, there’s a whole world out there that doesn’t know what you’re thinking…but would like to, or perhaps more importantly, needs to.

Positioning: All things being equal…what makes you “more” equal than others?

Seminars: Think you know it all? Well, there’s a good chance you do – to targeted markets with whom you wish to do business and promote yourself.

Newsletters: Share your ideas, broaden your constituency; send out industry-relevant information either as hard copy…or electronically (such as what you’re presently reading).

Trade Shows: Go to them, be in them, mingle within them, write a program article for them...

Event Marketing: Sponsor a cause, have an Open House; it’s good PR by “humanizing” your business.

The Newspaper: What a concept! For ideas, for client contact opportunities, for business references, don’t rely on the 11:00 PM TV news alone. Read the newspaper.

Greeting Cards: It doesn’t have to be Christmas to send them. Stay top of mind year-round, with Valentine’s Day, July 4th, Arbor Day – whatever! – as the “excuse.”

Postcards: Along with greeting cards, postcards are a fast, convenient, economical – and customized – way to let people know about your business (think realtors, financial services professionals, et al…).

Website: If you don’t have a site, get one. If you already have one, concentrate more on the text this time, by focusing on Keywords to help facilitate Search Engine Optimization. (You need to be found…before you’re read.)

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That’s enough pontificating for now…

Have a happy, healthy and prosperous 2008. And we’ll see you again the first Tuesday of next month with another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing tips.

Joel Kweskin

Caricatures!

2007-12-03T14:50:00.000-05:00

It's holiday gift-giving time. Now, you can do the fruitcake thing, the gift basket thing, the popcorn-in-a-tin thing or the gift certificate thing. But you might also want to consider giving a gift that is truly customized and personal.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Cartoonists have been lampooning politicians and royalty with devastating caricatures for over 300 years. This season you might wish to consider presenting a caricature from yourself. Not to devastate, however, but to tickle...

Caricatures make a great, customized gift for your clients or your favored customers...and certainly families and friends on the personal side. Caricatures of loyal (and long-standing) staff make great gifts as well, showing your appreciation for their dedicated service. Yours truly has done caricatures of individual staff members, framed and mounted on company walls. So it’s not only a unique, fun idea…it’s great for morale.

(If you’re new to this column, Yes, I do caricatures. And I’ve been doing them professionally – apart from my copywriting, conceptual and marketing strategy work – for, sheesh, three decades now.…)

Another popular means by which to utilize caricatures -- and no less a marketing tool than a corporate brochure or flyer -- is a Holiday Greetings card...customized to feature the illustrated likenesses of company officers and selected staff, and sent out to clients with a seasonal message thanking them for their business.

(See art above. If it cannot be opened for whatever reason, go to http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/caricaturesbyjoel/ for a look at that one, and others...)

Naturally, caricatures can be applied to ad specialty items as well -- on coffee mugs, beer decanters, tension sqeeze'em toys, and the like. And regardless of season, caricatures can enliven collateral marketing materials, ad campaigns, publicity packages, PowerPoint presentations and trade shows

If you've run out of ideas as we near the holidays, give a thought to caricatures...the "art" of gift-giving.

And in the meantime, frame the first Tuesday of next month for another masterpiece sampling of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips.

Joel Kweskin

Publish or Perish?

2007-11-27T14:30:00.000-05:00

“Publish or perish.” That’s the mantra in post-graduate academia. To be taken seriously as a scholar, one needs to write a paper and have it published in some scholarly publication.

Well, it’s really not all that much different once you get out into the business world of the entrepreneur.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

I had a nice chat with “sales growth” guru Bob Janet (http://www.bobjanet.com/) about the benefits of having his many articles on sales growth and marketing picked up by various publications representing a potpourri of industries. And how his speaking engagements have increased due to the cachet and presumed expertise – certainly earned in his case – that accompany one’s byline in a commercially or professionally established publication.

Other folks I know who are published – regularly, and that’s key – include Harvey Smith (http://www.carolinabusinesscoach.com/) periodically in The Charlotte Observer; business trainer and hiring consultant Denise Altman (http://www.altmaninitiative.com/) in Greater Charlotte Biz; IT marketing “maven” Sally Phillips (http://www.mariner-usa.com/) who skirts around the literal definition of “publishing” by appearing, vocally, on Charlotte’s local NPR station, WFAE-90.7 FM, with personal essays and observations; PR pro Patricia Pollack (http://www.myteamofexperts.com/) with an ongoing column in The Business Journal; and web marketing SEO queen Esther Kane (http://www.eckweb.com/), who offers her professional musings in a blog, along with her monthly newsletter.

When you write what you know, it translates to readers that you know what you write. That’s a glib way of saying there is a built-in respectability that comes with the distinction of having your words “archived” in a forum presented for public review. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to have a degree in journalism, either. (To my knowledge, the only one of the individuals I’ve noted who do have such a degree is…me.)

If you can get your knowledge down in a reasonably syntax-friendly way, you can write for the media. (And if you can’t or prefer not to tempt the grammar gods, there are professionals who can “ghost write” for you. Such as, again…yours truly.)

Getting selected media to accept your musings may not happen the very first time out of the gate, but it is do-able. Especially with said selected media always looking for informative – and entertaining – subjects that will help fill space and provide their subscribers with good, value-added material that reflects well on them.

Joel Kweskin

Alumni Affiliations

2007-11-27T14:25:00.000-05:00

I caught an interesting article in The Charlotte Observer about how college alumni – as depicted in this case by a popular Midwestern NCAA athletic division represented by those living and working in the Charlotte area – are keeping the old “ties that bind” by continuing to connect through networking.

Welcome to another edition of “Not Your Usual Marketing Tips” from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

The article discusses how “In the heart of ACC country, a group of transplants has found value in networking with fellow graduates of Big Ten universities.

“Neil Swiacki, 48, made his way to Charlotte 41/2 years ago after stints in Massachusetts, Indiana and Michigan, where he graduated from Michigan State in 1980.

“Now he heads the Big 10 Biznet, a Charlotte networking group. It's for people who've graduated from the 10 Midwestern schools – plus Penn State – and want ways to find new business contacts.

“ ‘There’s a lot of value to locating people with similar backgrounds,’ he said.

“The group is emblematic of the wave of newcomers from Midwestern and Northeastern states. Of the estimated 80,000 people from outside the Carolinas who moved to Mecklenburg and surrounding counties from 2004 to 2005, 10 percent are from the Midwest and 28 percent from the Northeast…U.S. Census data found.

“…Other business groups form around college alumni associations as well as race or ethnicity, regional geography, specific trades or professions, and other special interests. Even a dog fanciers’ group can turn into business networking opportunities for participants…

“Charlotte is still very much about relationship-building – people want to do business with people they know.”

Now I’ll assume that many if not most of you already belong to business networking groups. Chances are they’re the types that generically meet in restaurants or coffee shops and are comprised of disparate businesses. But this Big Ten thing is a great way to expand on the BNI’s of the world and their offshoots.

Maybe you have a favorite pastime or pursuit that can be parlayed into a group of similarly interested individuals. This adds real passion to the business proceedings that those customary networking groups are, by definition, lacking. And you, of course, get to decide whether or not to “lock out” your particular competition.

Check out these types of associations or clubs online or through friends and neighbors. And if there isn’t an organization, for instance, already devoted to fans of the Chicago White Sox, start one – like I did.

(Of course, I’m the only member so far…)

Joel Kweskin

Cool Stuff

2007-11-27T14:19:00.000-05:00

My wife and I were in Denver, Col., helping our son furnish his new apartment as he awaited the beginning of grad school at the University of Denver. Craving ice cream one evening, we sauntered into a 1950s retro place called “Gunther Toody’s” (named for a character in the old sitcom “Car 54, Where Are You?”…though I could swear that show didn’t air until the early ‘60s. Anyway, I digress…).

Marketing, as it were, to the nostalgia buffs among us from the get-go, there was one moment in particular that literally turned our heads…

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

When I asked to see the menu for the ice cream desserts, the waitress pointed instead to a curiously familiar item on the table. It was an old, red View Master. Remember those…the binocular-like housing with the circular array of tiny picture slides mounted partially on top? I looked through the viewers and immediately saw – in “3-D” yet! – an inviting thick chocolate shake with Reese’s pieces in it. I flipped the outside lever and another 3-D image came on, of a raspberry-flavored, vanilla-based shake. I delightedly continued to flip the lever for tantalizing pictures of more and more tasty treats…

I mean, how cool was that?

I’d love the opportunity to steal that idea some day and use it for a presentation either for my own marketing communications services, or the products of a “visionary” client.

What have you done lately to make your presentation, your product, your image “cool?” Or, at the least, something memorable, something unique, something for others to talk about?

Hey, I’m game if you are.

Joel Kweskin

Variable Data Printing

2007-11-27T14:10:00.000-05:00

Have you ever had VDP?

Don’t worry, it’s not some communicable disease. But what you might catch from it is the contagious notion that your business could see anywhere from twice the normal response to 10-15 times the response, depending on how far you go with it…

What am I talking about?

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

VDP is “printer-speak” for Variable Data Printing. At some time or another, you’ve probably been the recipient of a postcard or pamphlet from a realtor or home improvement service, or similar company, that managed to address you by name. And not just where the address is customarily printed.

According to Wikapedia, the online source for just about anything, “Variable Data Printing…is a form of on-demand printing in which elements such as text, graphics and images may be changed from one printed piece to the next without stopping or slowing down the press, using information from a database or external file.

“For example, a set of personalized letters, each with the same basic layout, can be printed with a different name and address on each letter. Variable Data Printing is used mainly for direct marketing, customer relationship marketing and advertising.”

One printer in town, with whom I’ve done business, has sent out its own marketing direct marketing piece in which it “targeted” me by showing a graphic of a pizza. But not just any pizza. This one had the name “Joel” spelled out in slices of pepperoni!

The same folks sent out another piece inviting me to their plant…with a MapQuest graphic showing the route from MY HOME to their plant! Talk about “target” marketing!

As has been pointed out by these printers and the few others in town who have this kind of technology capability, it “increases revenue, response rates and customer retention.” According to another printer I noted online, the benefits of VDP were clearly measured: Percentage increases in response time was 33.9%, overall revenue/profit was 31.6%, repetitive orders/retention was 47.6%, average size order/value of order was 24.5% and response rates was 36.0%.

There are different levels of personalization. And it is pricier than conventional direct marketing. But regardless of the way a client might go with this, I don’t think I’m overstating the case by saying that with this kind of ROI, this is a 21st century marketing tool to be reckoned with.

As always, yours truly would be happy to explore this option with you in marketing your business or service.

Joel Kweskin

Frequency

2007-11-27T14:03:00.000-05:00

It’s the first Tuesday of the new month, and it’s a promise I make (if only to myself) to get this e-zine out on schedule. Which reminds me of another medium for which a timely “schedule” is even more crucial. If you’re contemplating running an ad campaign, keep in mind the importance of giving it time and frequency to do its thing.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Once is not enough.

Now, of course, if you’re appearing in some one-time publication as an industry or civic booster, once is all you’ve got. But if you’re thinking of running in a pub that significantly reaches your market, think of it as an ongoing relationship. “Going steady,” if you will.

That’s because it’s frequency that eventually aids the message in burrowing its way into the consciousness of the reader.

Conrad Levinson writes in his Guerrilla Marketing series of books that it actually takes nine (9) times for the ad’s message to run before it sinks in. Generally speaking…

The first time, the prospect pays no attention to the ad.

The second time, it’s still virtually “invisible.”

The third time, there is a flicker of recognition by the prospect.

The fourth time, the prospect acknowledges the ad by viewing the advertiser as “successful.”

The fifth time, the prospect reads the ad copy more intently, with more scrutiny.

The sixth time, the prospect begins to consider purchasing the product.

The seventh time, the consideration to purchase becomes more serious.

The eighth time, the prospect plans the time to actually make the purchase.

The ninth time “is the day you’ve been waiting for…your prospect actually makes a purchase, often with little sales resistance because the time you have taken for the prospect to notice your marketing has earned their trust in you.”

Levinson goes on to say that “experts recommend advertising three times for credibility and seven to nine times for people to buy from you.”

And, naturally, if you need help with conceptualizing as well as constructing and placing that ad campaign…consider the capabilities of yours truly.

Joel Kweskin

Da Vinci Code

2007-11-27T13:56:00.000-05:00

I was in the grocery store the other day and noticed something called Da Vinci chianti on display. I had never heard of the product before; guess I’m just not an oenophile. But what made that display truly memorable for me was that the bottles were joined by interspersed copies of The Da Vinci Code.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

So who hasn’t read or seen The Da Vinci Code by now? Forget what trespasses of faith the storyline may be breaching. The point here is that some company called Da Vinci that bottles chianti stuck its thumb in the marketing pie and pulled out a plum.

(Sorry, we’re not here to address mixed metaphors...)

Since the book has become a cottage industry unto itself, we will assume that it was the chianti that took advantage of the 800-pound gorilla in the pop culture consciousness of consumers and grabbed a bunch of the books to, in turn, call attention to itself.

Not a bad idea. In fact, it’s so not bad (sorry, we’re not here to address weird syntax either…) that I would heartily recommend, if pertinent, that kind of approach to you and your business.

Now, to tie in to a massive pop culture presence as The Da Vinci Code may be fraught with the kind of licensing considerations that would quickly render the idea moot. (Even though I have a sneaking suspicion that the distributors for this product threw caution to the wind and just did a localized, “maverick” thing.)

But there may be any numbers of ways that “plain folks” like you and me can still ”cross-promote” our product or service. It starts with finding an affinity profession to yours – i.e. commercial property managers with commercial movers/furniture/flooring dealers…realtors with interior decorators/landscapers…business coach with payroll services/accountant…or a humble copywriter/creative director with printers/web designers.

But you might even find an existing popular product – a drink, a candy, a movie – that you can put an appropriate “spin” on and leverage as having some relevance to you and your product.

The format might be a joint speaking engagement, or trade show presence, or newsletter, or special event, or announcement at a networking group.

Such affiliation may not exactly inspire a movie. But a dramatic “connection” can go a long way in making you memorable in the eyes of prospects and existing clients.

And remember…as with all these editions, we’re here to help you put any of these ideas into practice.

Joel Kweskin

Videos

2007-11-27T13:48:00.000-05:00

If a picture’s worth a thousand words, how much is a video worth?

Allan Horowitz is a friend and colleague who runs the video (and film) production company, Blue Planet Creative. http://blueplanetcreative.net/ Allan and I have collaborated on a few projects and I respect his savvy when it comes to this dynamic marketing tool. In fact, I respect it so much, I’m going to let him do the talking…

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Videos are the “action” way to tell your business’s story. They can appear through all kinds of vehicles: streaming on your website; as an ongoing “loop” on a monitor at a trade show booth; on a screen in a darkened room at a seminar; as a tiny CD/DVD business calling card; as a commercial on TV or in movie theaters.

And, of course depending on the length and production value, a video might not cost much more than its printed cousins, the large, slick brochure or a small catalogue.

“Video is one of the most powerful communication tools available,” says Allan. “This is because video has the power to move people. Through shot composition, lighting, pacing, music and voice, a video presentation can establish an emotional connection with the viewer that no other medium can. It can move people to act. It can inform, educate and inspire. It can spark excitement. Video puts power behind your brand. And having a video to market your business, to communicate with others, to tell your story, shows a high level of commitment that people respect and which gives you built-in credibility.

“Think what a lift it would be for your business to have a video presentation that speaks your language, conveys your information accurately and reflects your organization’s values. It would be a permanent source of pride with ROI to boot!”

So next time you’re thinking of a way to market your business in an expressive, “moving” way…think video.

Joel Kweskin

Shared Frames of Reference

2007-11-27T06:54:00.000-05:00

I gave a talk on 10 Ways to Market Yourself Without Using the “Obvious” -- i.e. brochures, ads, commercials. One of the ways I suggested was by connecting with clients and colleagues via “news they can use.” That is, stuff of interest to them culled from various media sources. It’s a way to show you care by sharing information, to show you’re thinking of that person, to build relationships.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Here’s a case in point. My sister e-mailed to me an online video interview with Buffalo Bob Smith. (If you have to ask who that is, chances are you’re too young to remember…)

Well, after I saw the interview with Howdy Doody’s “best buddy,” I found myself wrapped in the sanctum sanctorum of nostalgia. I had to immediately forward the interview to around 30 or so fellow Baby Boomers.

Ten of them responded in some fashion or another. (Not a bad “direct mail” response, by the way – around 30 per cent!)

Gene Fitzpatrick, Senior Mortgage Consultant with American Home Mortgage and a networking colleague was one of those who responded. And in a most wistful way:

“My younger brother, Tom, and I were on the show, probably in 1953 to 1955.

“Tom was asked by Buffalo Bob, ‘If you had a million dollars, what would you do with it?’
Tom replied, ‘I would keep half and give the other half to the poor people.’ No lie. We still talk about it when we get together.

“We really had some great times growing up in Jamaica (Queens, NY). We always looked forward to the annual Holiday show put on by the Gertz Department store. They had this club for the kids called the Gertz PIE club. I don’t remember what the PIE stood for, but it didn’t have to do with food.

“A few weeks before Christmas, Gertz rented out a movie theater on Jamaica Avenue and it was first come, first served. The doors opened at 9 AM or so. Tom and I always got there early so we could sit in the front row. We had a better chance of getting selected to pick someone’s name out of a box. If we were selected, we would receive a nice gift just for making the pick. The prizes would range from a model car kit to various toys and even a bike. Tom won a bike one time. In between the prizes, they played movies and had entertainment. It was all free to PIE club members. We went until we were 13 or so.

“Thanks for the memories.”

You’re welcome, Gene.

Staying top of mind with your colleagues, clients, prospects, whomever, doesn’t take much effort, really. A little video interview to a selected group of individuals can do the trick. And if it doesn’t translate into any monetary rewards right away, well, that’s okay.

Think of how much richer we are just for having shared the anecdote.

Joel Kweskin

Incidentally, here’s the video interview with Buffalo Bob Smith, of “Howdy Doody” fame:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2426798029558407010&q=howdy+doody&time=1110000&pl=true

A Numbers Game

2007-11-27T06:32:00.000-05:00

In the business world, as we’ve been told a million times, it’s a numbers game. That usually means one thing to most of us, but I’d like to suggest that it perhaps take on an added meaning for you as you move forward with your marketing.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

The Charlotte Observer ran a fascinating article on (consumer) magazines that use numbers in their headlines to help sell that particular issue.

Harper’s Bazaar talks up “783 New Ideas to Flatter You,” Glamour magazine has “500 Spring Looks For All Shapes & Sizes,” Field & Stream magazine offers “19 Ways to Get Out Alive (Survival Skills).”

As one industry insider says, “It’s all voodoo.”

But as Cole Porter lyricized long before, “Do do that voodoo that you do so well.”

In other words, numbers – in all their mathematical mystery – have a hold on us because it somehow speaks to our sense of logic and specificity and preciseness and definitiveness.

“Bigger is better,” quotes the Observer. And “odd numbers seem more believable than even numbers…The odd number speaks to authenticity. If it’s odd, it can’t be made up or shouldn’t have been made up.”

“You’re alerting readers that you have the expertise, you’ve honed down the massive amount of information out there, especially with the Internet, and you won’t waste their time,” another expert observes.

So if it works for magazines, how about your own promoting efforts – say, through your brochures, your press releases, your website, your direct mail, your 30-second “elevator” speech? I don’t know about you, but I’ve represented 42 different industries through 23 various capabilities as I have spent 11 years as principal of JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Try incorporating significant statistics, facts, figures, records into your story…perhaps as they relate to case studies where you can show the measure – literally – of your capabilities in helping a client. They lend credence to your message, and cachet to your business.

Numbers…it all adds up.

Joel Kweskin

Getting to the Point

2007-11-26T19:18:00.000-05:00

Since I am occasionally chided for being too wordy in my NYUM Tips, I’m trying to be more mindful of that particular proclivity. (Though obviously not enough, you see, to resist alliterative turns of phrase.)

Welcome to a hopefully not too verbose edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

But the point to be brief and concise is, generally, well advised.

As marketing guru Robert Middleton points out:

“Since all marketing is about communication, the faster you can get your message across, the better results you'll typically get...

”Some places you can use the short message technique:

”1. On the home page of your web site. People want to be able to glance at this one page, read a few words and know what you're about. You need to go beyond a few bullet points, but you don't need several long paragraphs outlining every single thing your business offers.

”2. In an email that points to more detailed information on a web page. In tests I've done, a message that was only 84 words got 50% more click-throughs than a message that was 284 words.

”3. In an Audio Logo. A concise statement in ten words or less saying who you work with and the problems you address will almost always generate more interest than a long-winded description of what you do, who you do it for and how you're different.

”4. In a phone message left on voice mail. Saying your name, company name and your phone number will generally get more return calls that a big recorded sales spiel that often convinces your prospect that they definitely don't need your services.

”5. In an answer to the question: ‘Tell me more about your services,’ it's better to tell a little and then ask a question than it is to give an itemized list of every service you offer.”

…And so I think I’ll end it right here, before I’m accused of doing what I said I wasn’t going to do.

Joel Kweskin

Keyword Research

2007-11-26T14:52:00.000-05:00

Esther Kane is a long-time friend, colleague and principal behind Eckweb Designs, Inc. (http://www.eckweb.com/), offering website design, website maintenance and website marketing services. So she’s got some authoritative say on pretty much all things website. Her “mantra” though is not so much on graphic approach as it is on the verbal. More function than form, if you will. So I posed the question, just what is this Keyword Research thing, anyway?

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Esther’s take on the subject:

"Keyword Research is the art of finding keyword phrases that are relevant to a subject matter. These keyword phrases must possess two qualifications. One, the keyword phrase must be popular. Two, the keyword phrase must have little Internet competition.

"Let’s take a family attorney who provides a variety of services. One of which is estate planning.”In my research, I found the phrase "difference between wills living trusts". My research revealed that this phrase is estimated to be typed in 57 times per day and Google showed only 2 websites competing for this phrase. Easily, a page could be created answering the question, "What is the difference between wills and living trusts?" This page could be added to the website and of course, bring in the additional traffic and potential clients.

"Even if you've already got a website, wouldn't it be great to know what Internet users are already searching for and then reworking your site to meet those searches? Instead of the usual, 'about us' and 'our services,' etc., wouldn't it be better for your bottom line if you could address the needs of the Internet customers?

"The reality is, business websites are great…IF they bring in business. If your website brings in business, wouldn't customers and prospects keep coming back to you for updated data? I think so. Well, I know so!

"Here are some other examples for you (based on actual clients)...

"If you're creating a website for a massage therapist - make sure to use the phrase:"prenatal pregnancy massage therapy." Estimate count is 174 times per day with only 6 sites in competition!

"If you're creating a website for a Christian school - make sure to use the phrase:"Christian art courses." Estimate count is 97 times per day with only 3 sites in competition!

"If you're creating a website for a South Florida realtor - make sure to use the phrase: 'luxury South Florida residences." Estimate count is 123 times per day with only 13 sites in competition!'

"Get the idea? People are already searching for ‘stuff’ on the Internet. The best way to draw people to your site for any specific "stuff" is to write about that "stuff" on your website.”

Thanks, Esther. Feel free to contact her for assistance on Keyword Research, her website address noted back at the top.

Joel Kweskin

Printing

2007-11-26T14:45:00.000-05:00

Everything these days, it seems, is digital. Your computer, your wristwatch, your camera, your radio, your cell phone, the guy in the next car using the cell phone… Well, maybe not. The point here, though, is that when you want to print marketing materials in quantity, there is a cost efficient difference between printing the traditional “offset” way, and printing “digital.”

Welcome to another edition Of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

So you want to print a brochure. Or maybe one of those oversized post cards. Which way to go?

Let’s first go to the experts: PageWorks, an online commercial printer, explains that “Offset printing uses plates and inks to put an image onto paper. The ‘make ready’ (preparation) process of offset varies, but often requires 20-30 minutes to burn the plates, as well as time to mount, register the plates, and bring the output "up to color." It often takes an hour or more to print a single page. Once up and running, however, the economies and speed of offset printing for (projects) over 750 pages typically will be better than digital processes.

“Digital Printing uses a different technology altogether. It images typically with very fine toner. The time it takes to image the first page is usually well under a minute. This technology makes short runs, or runs from 1 to about 750 impressions less expensive, as well as quicker to produce than offset printing.”

The Penn State University website devoted to these matters points out that “quantity is currently the most important factor in choosing the best printing method. Digital printing generally has a fixed per-unit price. Whether you are printing one or 1,000 copies, you will generally pay close to the same price for each individual publication.

“Offset printing, however, is charged on a sliding scale -- the more you print, the less each publication will cost. Significant time is required to set up offset presses with plates, ink, and registration, so the first few copies are very expensive. But after the presses are set up and running, the price per publication for large quantities becomes much less expensive than digital.

“The point where offset printing becomes more economical than digital printing is not always clear. When printing only a few copies or when you want to print on demand, choose digital. When printing several thousand copies, offset is clearly the best choice. However, when quantities reach 1,000 copies, it is best to have your printer estimate both printing methods.”

Generally speaking, too, 4-color application is less expensive than it used to be. Talk to your printer about your options. Or…talk to yours truly. We’ll do a job on your printed marketing piece you can be proud of.

Joel Kweskin

Straight Talk

2007-11-26T14:35:00.000-05:00

“What does Love mean?”

This question was posed to a group of 4-to-8 year-olds. You may have seen this – it was one of those feel-good mass emails we all get every now and then. Not to be crass, but what I took from the answers was something with a more marketing-related application to it.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

As the accompanying commentary pointed out, ”The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined.” They are also real. And as pure a “sound bite” as you can come up with.

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love."-- Rebecca, age 8

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You just know that your name is safe in their mouth."-- Billy, age 4

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other."-- Karl, age 5

Here’s what I like about these quotes. They get to the point while painting a very evocative image. Rather than getting bogged down in business-speak or techno-speak, a story is told simply, with emotion and color.

"Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs."-- Chrissy, age 6

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired."-- Terri, age 4

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK." -- Danny, age 7

You don’t have to be a Pulitzer Prize-winning author to write with such élan. (Obviously, when you consider the age of these writers.) All you have to do is think in terms of telling your story in a simple, straightforward way…and allow your own enthusiasm to come through. After all, wasn’t it enthusiasm for your business that brought you to where you are today?

"Love is when you kiss all the time. Then when you get tired of kissing, you still want to be together and you talk more. My Mommy and Daddy are like that."-- Emily, age 8

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen." -- Bobby, age 7

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday." -- Noelle - age 7

Of course, if you’d rather have someone help you write effective, engaging copy for an ad, brochure or commercial you’re looking to produce, I know a professional who’d be happy to lend you a hand… ;)

(If not, there’s always my six-year-old niece…)

Joel Kweskin

…Just for the heck of it, here are two more entries from that e-mail:

"When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you." -- Karen, age 7

Author and lecturer Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge. The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child. The winner was a four-year-old child whose next-door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife.

Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there. When his mother asked what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, "Nothing, I just helped him cry."

Value Added

2007-11-26T14:31:00.000-05:00

A recent article appeared in the newspaper regarding a U.S. Appeals Court ruling on whether Certs was a breath mint…or a candy mint. The ruling would determine whether the product was subject to customs duties imposed on food imports.

We’ll let you know the answer at the end of this, another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

But in the meantime, it got me to thinking. Are you one thing…or another? Or both? Or, more..? Does it suffice that you market yourself as “only” a CPA? Or can you be a CPA and a business consultant at the same time (as my colleague, Donna Bordeaux does)? Is it enough to provide commercial real estate services alone…or might an additional marketplace be served by providing commercial financing as well (as another colleague, Warren Shinn does)? What if you’re a marketing/advertising guy…but provide publicity/media news stories for clients also (hmmm, I wonder who does that)?

It’s all about value added. If you can be more of a one-stop shop for customers, isn’t that better for them? And doesn’t that make you more valuable as well? Obviously, you can’t be everything to everybody. But it may require very little of you to dangle another sign from the shingle you’ve put up primarily. Especially if it’s a pertinent, relative, relatable capability that’s easy enough for you to add on.

Prospects with whom I first meet ask how I go about ‘delivering” for them. As indicated earlier, I may tell them I can develop advertising or collateral materials. But if they really want to add to the mix, why not work up some product or service story ideas I can write and pitch to the media as well? Many consultants only concentrate on advertising. Or only publicity or PR. I let them know I can help them with both.

Some business coaches or consultants might recommend you stay “grounded” on one fundamental aspect of what you do, so as to not lose focus or dilute your talents or capabilities. There’s probably no right or wrong here; I just feel the more you can do for your client – again, within reason and so it makes sense – the more you become indispensable to them.

You can be a breath mint AND a candy mint.

As for the official ruling on Certs…”it’s a breath mint, and therefore not subject to customs duties imposed on food imports, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled,” as reported by Bloomberg News.

One other thing I can do – provide as a public service this trivial bit of information. If you’ve been missing an Oldies radio station ever since Magic 96 changed formats, there’s one I recently discovered. (Though it probably helps to be in the southern part of Charlotte, for the best “signal.”)

WRBK-90.3 FM is an obscure station out of Richburg, South Carolina, down around the I-77 corridor south of Rock Hill. But if you can pick it up, it’s a real breath of fresh air. Its content is from 1955-1978, and there are amazingly few commercials – all of which are local to that area of the state. So it’s almost like listening to satellite radio. And, just as significantly, among the songs you hear are going to be a good smattering of ones, I assure you, you either don’t know…or haven’t heard in decades!

I just think it’s cool. But, then again, I’m an old Baby Boomer…

Joel Kweskin

How to Build a Brochure

2007-11-26T14:20:00.000-05:00

It seems that one of the first things a business does when setting itself up, aside from developing a logo and business cards, is create a brochure. That certainly is the most common project I am asked to develop for clients…even AFTER their businesses have been established.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

So you say you’ve already done a brochure, eh? Okay. Did you first make sure that all or most of the elements listed below have found a place therein? I was surfing the web recently and came across a site called About.com. As they describe themselves, “we're the one place on the Web where you'll find passionate people with practical advice and solutions for almost any problem. Whatever your needs, the answer is... About.com.”

Well, here is a Checklist of materials that they suggest should go into “building” a brochure. And I concur. These points may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised how many of them are neglected (you included?):

*Name of Location, Business or Organization.
*Address.
*Phone Number.
*Fax Number.
*Email Address.
*Web Page Address.
*Headline that creates curiosity, states a major benefit, or otherwise entices the reader to open and read your brochure.
*Headline that states the name of the Product, Project, or Described Process.
*Subheads.
*Short, easy to read blocks of text.
*Lists, charts.
*Key Benefits (2-3).
*Features.
*Instructions, steps, parts (for a procedure, to assemble a product, etc.)
*Biography (of business owner, key members of organization, officers, etc.).
*Mission Statement.
*History.
*Logo.
*Graphic Image(s) (including purely decorative elements).
*Photographs of product, place, people.
*Diagram, flow chart.
*Map.
*Call to Action (What you want the reader to do: call, visit, fill out a form, etc.)

Of course, now that you know what to put into your new, or even revamped, brochure, you also know whom to call to help you put it all together…

Joel Kweskin

What's Your Color?

2007-11-26T14:08:00.000-05:00

A couple of years ago I was on a train from Madrid to Barcelona, reading the international edition of Time magazine when I came across an ad for Malaysia Airlines.

(Have I impressed you with the sly, sophisticated manner in which I’ve introduced such a cultured, cosmopolitan anecdote? Hah! My wife and I were in Spain visiting our daughter, studying abroad in Barcelona...)

The ad discussed color. More precisely, “Mood Lighting.” It went on to say “Over 200 variable shades of color and light. To help your body sleep through time zones and awaken you to sunrise. The T700 Cabin illumination system is just one part of the completely redesigned cabins on board Malaysia Airlines.”

Anyway, there is a point to all this. It got me thinking about color in general, and its psychological effect in persuasive advertising and collateral materials.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Colors definitely have an impact on our senses. Colors imply different intentions, eliciting different moods and responses…going so far as to influence product sales.

According to one website on the topic, “the colors you use for an advertisement are more important than the actual wording of the ad. The reason for this is that the colors (and graphics) capture the consumers’ attention, then causes them to read your ad…Psychology.about.com (says) ‘Psychologists have suggested that color impression can account for 60% of the acceptance or rejection of that product or service.’”

BPS Outdoor Advertising (billboards) looks at the appeal of individual colors on its website:
“Red symbolizes action, warmth, power, aggression, excitement, drama, fire, blood, passion, love, danger, anger, and heat. It is a highly visible color that will always attract attention. Red is also a good color for automobiles sales, pet shops, pasta shops, pizzerias, and restaurants. However, the color red is not recommended for medical companies because it signals bad health, blood, and emergencies.

“Orange is a vibrant and fun color. It improves mental clarity, promotes warmth and happiness. Orange also increases oxygen's flow to the brain. Contentment, fruitfulness, and wholesomeness are qualities that are also associated with orange. The color orange can help an expensive product seem more reasonably priced. Orange is an appetite stimulant. It is a good color choice for vitamin shops, Mexican restaurants, dance clubs, and products that target Latin and French audiences.

“Yellow is a perfect color for sunny, happy, bright, cheerful, playful, easygoing, and optimistic advertisements. It’s ideal for florists, candy shops, toy stores, amusement parks, and discount stores. Yellow is the first color the eye processes. It is also the most visible color to the human eye. This is why it grabs attention faster than any other color.

“Green symbolizes life, nature, environment, youth, money, renewal, hope, and power. It is a color that soothes people, reduces pain, and makes us feel safe. Since green traffic lights have conditioned us to go forward or to enter places, it makes us feel welcomed. Yellow-green is not a wise color for food advertisements because it is an appetite depressant. Light green calms people. That is why most walls in jails, schools, waiting rooms, and hospitals are light green. Green is a great color for financial advisors, banks, and accountants because it signals money. It is also good for outdoor products because it gives consumers a natural outdoor feeling. The color green can be used for green houses, vegetable stands, landscaping, and farmers because it signals life.”

According to the website Color Wheel Pro, “Blue is the color of the sky and sea. It is often associated with depth and stability. It symbolizes trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence, intelligence, faith, truth, and heaven. Blue is considered beneficial to the mind and body. It slows human metabolism and produces a calming effect. Blue is strongly associated with tranquility and calmness. In heraldry, blue is used to symbolize piety and sincerity. You can use blue to promote products and services related to cleanliness (water purification filters, cleaning liquids, vodka), air and sky (airlines, airports, air conditioners), water and sea (sea voyages, mineral water). As opposed to emotionally warm colors like red, orange, and yellow; blue is linked to consciousness and intellect. Use blue to suggest precision when promoting high-tech products. Blue is a masculine color; highly accepted among males. Dark blue is associated with depth, expertise, and stability; it is a preferred color for corporate America. Avoid using blue when promoting food and cooking, because blue suppresses appetite.

“Purple combines the stability of blue and the energy of red. Purple is associated with royalty. It symbolizes power, nobility, luxury, and ambition. It conveys wealth and extravagance. Purple is associated with wisdom, dignity, independence, creativity, mystery, and magic. According to surveys, almost 75 percent of pre-adolescent children prefer purple to all other colors. Purple is a very rare color in nature; some people consider it to be artificial. Light purple is a good choice for a feminine design. You can use bright purple when promoting children's products.

“White is associated with light, goodness, innocence, purity, and virginity. It is considered to be the color of perfection. White means safety, purity, and cleanliness. As opposed to black, white usually has a positive connotation. White can represent a successful beginning. In heraldry, white depicts faith and purity. In advertising, white is associated with coolness and cleanliness because it's the color of snow. You can use white to suggest simplicity in high-tech products. White is an appropriate color for charitable organizations; angels are usually imagined wearing white clothes. White is associated with hospitals, doctors, and sterility, so you can use white to suggest safety when promoting medical products. White is often associated with low weight, low-fat food, and dairy products.

“Black is associated with power, elegance, formality, death, evil, and mystery. Black is a mysterious color associated with fear and the unknown (black holes). It usually has a negative connotation (blacklist, black humor, 'black death'). However, Black denotes strength and authority; it is considered to be a very formal, elegant, and prestigious color (black tie, black Mercedes). In heraldry, black is the symbol of grief. Black gives the feeling of perspective and depth, but a black background diminishes readability. Black contrasts well with bright colors. Combined with red or orange – other very powerful colors – black gives a very aggressive color scheme.”

So, then…what “hues” and “tones” make up YOUR advertising and marketing pieces?
And are they appropriate to your product or service?

Joel Kweskin

Standing Out

2007-11-26T14:00:00.000-05:00

My wife and I were in New York a couple of years ago and among the things we saw (in addition to family, old friends, old neighborhoods and a new play) was “The Gates,” the art “happening” in Central Park that paraded 7,000-plus archways with saffron/orange textile hanging from their beams back to back to back along the Park’s pathways. I can’t recall seeing the City so mobbed with curiosity-seekers. It was like Christmas week. But here we were eight weeks later, in the middle of an otherwise non-descript winter.

Yet this was something, even for New York, that was certainly “descript.” Something that stood out amidst all that the Apple customarily has going for it.

It made me wonder…what do we do to “stand out.” What can we do?

Welcome to another edition of “Not Your Usual Marketing Tips” from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

And since I asked the question…I’m going to let someone else answer it.

Robert Middleton is a marketing consultant and electronic-medium guru out of the San Francisco bay area who has an e-Zine that I subscribe to. Good stuff, enlightening stuff, inspiring stuff. Here are his thoughts, for example, on “The Secret to Standing Out.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------One of the things I don't talk about enough is how you package the actual service you are marketing and selling to your clients. You may be selling consulting, coaching, training or design services, but that's really not what you're selling.And although I emphasize that the best way to talk about your services initially is in terms of what is missing or not working through a problem-oriented Audio Logo (companies frustrated by high turnover or individuals struggling to achieve their dreams), this is not what you're ultimately selling either.

What sells best is a concrete, specific promise of improving your prospects' current condition and a service offering that doesn't sound like everything else currently available.Let's look at a few scenarios.When asked what you do and you answer with a problem-oriented Audio Logo (as above), your desired response is, "How do you do that?" And your answer is the key to marketing success. Here are some possible responses. Remember, all responses are offering the same thing. But you're going to get very different results depending on how you articulate your response.

1. We work with manufacturing companies to increase their profits by hiring and retaining the best people. 2. We work with manufacturing companies to increase profits by a minimum of 24% by hiring and retaining the best people.3. We work with manufacturing companies to increase profits by a minimum of 24% through our unique approach called Optimal Resource Utilization.

Number 1 is a very generic response. Increasing profits is too general, and hiring and retaining the best people sounds like something they know about already.

Number 2 is better because you're being specific about profit improvement.

But 3 is the best because not only are you specific about increasing profits, you apply an approach unknown to your prospects that makes it sound unlike anything else out there.And believe me, not many Independent Professionals are doing this. Their promises are generic and their approaches sound like what everyone else is doing.

The point is simple. If you offer a service that promises a specific, desirable result and you make what you are offering intriguing and different from what everyone else is offering, you will get more attention, interest, response, and action from your prospects.The difference can be dramatic.

To capsulize:

*Don't be shy about making promises about results. If it's true, it's not boasting. The trick is to talk about results in a way that is low-key but impressive at the same time.

* What is everyone else promising? Don't promise that or you'll get confused with them. Your promise needs to sound not only valuable and credible but unlike anyone else's promise.

* Both your promise and the name of your service need to get to "the heart of the matter" for the prospect. That is, they need to hit the right nerve and stimulate an immediate desire to know more.

* Don't go over the top with your promise or your service name. They will stimulate skepticism and mistrust. Good marketing is very attention-getting and motivating but it does not insult your intelligence.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sounds good to me.

You know what else stands out? The fabulous fish and “appetizing” we had at Barney Greengrass on the Upper West Side. But that’s another story…

Joel Kweskin

Leaving No Stone Unturned

2007-11-25T23:32:00.000-05:00

Apropos of nothing, this cute little fable came my way and I thought you’d enjoy…

Many years ago in a small European village, a merchant had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to a moneylender. The moneylender fancied the merchant's beautiful daughter so he proposed a bargain. He said he would forgo the merchant' debt if he could marry the merchant's daughter. The merchant and his daughter were horrified by the proposal. The cunning moneylender suggested that they let Providence decide the matter.

The moneylender told them that he would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty bag. The girl would then have to pick one pebble from the bag. If she picked the black pebble, she would become the moneylender's wife and her father's debt would be forgiven. If she picked the white pebble she need not marry him and her father's debt would still be forgiven. But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown into jail.

The moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles from the ground. But the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick her pebble from the bag.

What would you have done if you were the girl? If you had to advise her, what would you have told her? Careful analysis would produce three possibilities:

1. The girl should refuse to take a pebble.

2. The girl should show that there were two black pebbles in the bag and expose the moneylender as a cheat.

3. The girl should pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment.

Take a moment to ponder over the story. The girl's dilemma cannot be solved with traditional logical thinking.

Here’s what she did: She put her hand into the bag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost among all the other pebbles.

"Oh, how clumsy of me," she said. "But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which pebble I picked."

Since the remaining pebble is black, it must be assumed that she had picked the white one. And since the moneylender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.

MORAL OF THE STORY: Most complex problems do have a solution; sometimes we just have to think about them in a different way.

Joel Kweskin

Focus

2007-11-25T23:27:00.000-05:00

“If your audience could derive one main, focused (important word!) thought out of this piece, what would it be?”

That was Number 10 in my list of 10 questions we discussed last time -- from my Creative Strategy Form you should be answering before acting on creating a marketing piece. It’s even more important to consider the word “focus” when specifically creating an ad.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Unless you’re doing a catalogue with umpteen septillion items to sell, your best bet is to focus on one main service or product. Not that you shouldn’t mention that you have more than one commodity to offer, but in the short space – not to mention time – in which your audience is flipping pages, your ad has to get at the crux of what you do. Simply and quickly.

Even if you’re a Sears or a Target or Wal-Mart, you’ll note that their ads don’t show everything they sell. Instead they may talk about price (Wal-Mart), youthful/hip approach (Target) or a particular appliance (Sears).

Again, it’s a matter of space and time. How much attention can you reasonably expect your reader to give you? Put yourself in their shoes (or eyeglasses).

I attended a seminar once where an ad guru brought a couple of props to the podium. One was a small square platform with neat rows of sharp points sticking up. The other was a similar square platform, but with one sharp point sticking up (the old fashioned kind of retail receipts “holder”).

He took a single sheet of paper and tried impaling it first through the rows of points. Though it created minor little “impressions,” the sheet would not cut through; it remained on top of the sharp points. When he took the same sheet and forced it over the single sharp point, however, guess what happened?

The single, “focused message” broke through, while the “many-messaged” sheet hardly made a dent.

And now you get the…you-know-what.

Joel Kweskin

Creative Strategy Form

2007-11-25T23:20:00.000-05:00

So you say you want a brochure? Or an ad? Or a radio spot?

Okay, but…have you filled out your “Creative Strategy Form” first?

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

It’s not just a matter of looking at a blank piece of paper – or screen – and saying to yourself, okay, I want a new brochure and here’s how it will look: I’ll put a picture here, put the logo there, and just write down whatever comes into my head and place it all on the inside…

Not that that may not have a chance to succeed vis-à-vis what your competitors have floating out there in the marketplace. But the better chance is when initial thought and discipline goes into the recipe, you’ll be cooking up something far more flavorful and nutritional…if nutrition be a metaphor here for substance and a meaningful message.

Here’s what I prescribe to my clients before we embark on the vehicle itself – whether it’s a brochure, ad, radio/TV spot, billboard, even to an extent a logo design. They need to fill out a single sheet of paper, a questionnaire I call the “Creative Strategy Form.”

Here’s what it asks:

* How would you describe your product/service?

* What/who is your target audience?

* What are your business’s (cosmetic) features – are you bigger, smaller, prettier, older, younger, in the city, in the suburbs, etc.?

* What are the benefits to your clients (as opposed to “features,” what are the elements to your product/service that can actually help them)?

* Who is your competition?

* What do they have that you don’t?

* What do YOU have that THEY don’t?

* Do you have a “call to action,” such as a coupon, a giveaway, a website?

* Do you have samples of marketing materials done by your competitors – or even in another industry – that you like, or particularly impresses you?

* If your audience could derive one main, focused (important word!) thought out of this piece, what would it be?

And there you have it. If you can answer these questions…or even if you can’t, and it prompts you to think further about how to “explain” your business…you’ll be that much more ahead of the game when it comes to developing your message, your theme, even your artwork that puts a graphic “face” on the materials.

And it certainly takes the guessing game out of how to fill that blank piece of paper, or screen.

Joel Kweskin

It's the Keywords, Stupid

2007-11-25T23:13:00.000-05:00

This is a “long-y,” but I think it’ll be worth your while…

How many of you out there have a website?

Ah, but how many of you know how to UTILIZE the website?

That is, how many of you have a website, have it registered with a search engine, and are taking full advantage of key words within your site to help drive potential Internet readers – and prospective clients – to it?

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

And let me be the first to concede that I may not be doing all that’s appropriate to reach a conclusively assertive answer to the last question I posed. That’s because I’m fairly new to the game myself. Notwithstanding three decades of experience in “marketing communications,” it has been derived mostly from traditional print and broadcasting means.

I have two websites: http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/, which features my background in advertising, collateral and publicity; and http://www.caricaturesbyjoel.com/ that, as the name suggests, highlights my capabilities as a professional caricaturist and illustrator.

Yet I am mindful that I probably need to re-address the text in each of these sites so that they are worded in such a way – in such SPECIFIC ways – that they not only adequately describe what I do, but the words themselves act as “bait” to bring those “fishing” for my services to my “watering hole” -- er, um -- site.

Esther Kane is a long-time friend and principal behind Eckweb Designs, Inc. (http://www.eckweb.com/), offering website design, website maintenance and website marketing services. So she’s got some authoritative say on what’s called “Search Engine Optimization (SEO).” Enough so that I’m going to get out of the way and let her do the talking here:

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“SEO…is the process of increasing the amount of visitors to a web site by ranking high in the search results of a search engine. The higher a web site ranks in the results of a search, the greater the chance that that site will be visited by a user. It is common practice for Internet users to not click through pages and pages of search results, so where a site ranks in a search is essential for directing more traffic toward the site. ”SEO helps to ensure that a site is accessible to a search engine and improves the chances that the site will be found by the search engine.

“1) You can't just plug a keyword phrase into your website and expect search engines to rank you for that phrase or even expect viewers to stay at your website just because your phrase brought them there. The keyword phrase you place on your website must be relevant to your service and or product and you must provide information (valid information) concerning that service or product.”

2) The density of keywords on website pages is important. Therefore, you can't just place a chosen keyword phrase on a page once. That page must reflect the "theme" of that keyword phrase. For example: let's say you chose a keyword phrase such as "mortgage calculator". You have a real estate site and you would like to provide your clients with a mortgage calculator. This keyword phrase provides a particular service. Therefore, it would be best to place this on its own page. By doing this, you also create a link to it on your navigation menu which adds links to that page. What I'm trying to say is that you can't just plug the phrase into a website page and expect that phrase to be considered important to the search engines. It isn't, not in comparison to other websites and their promotion of Mortgage Calculator.”

3) Relevance, relevance, relevance. This is a very important factor! The keyword phrase you choose MUST be relevant to your product or service. For example…it can be argued that you can put a sentence on your website (saying) something like "As seen in Google." Well, the problem is that even though your website may be seen in Google, the truth is that when an Internet searcher types in "Google" they're not looking for your product or service, they are looking for the search engine Google. BUT, if you wanted to provide your own website clients with the option of using the Google search engine directly from your website, then yes, by all means, you can. That's a service you are providing your clients, and if by chance, the service you provide to your clients happens to be something that other Internet users are searching, then by all means, it's valid!

4) Single word keywords - because of the general nature of a single word keyword such as "health," it is almost impossible to obtain high rankings for a single word keyword (unless it's a specific brand name) and also, it brings in a general traffic population versus a targeted audience. Any ethical search engine optimization company will advise you that marketing for a single word keyword on websites is simply not feasible.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Ya got all that?

It’s not just the graphics, folks. It’s the words.

Joel Kweskin

Vacation Ideas

2007-11-25T23:01:00.000-05:00

My good buddy Jeff Klein loves to collect brochures from his family vacations around the country. I mean, this guy’s stash could fill practically every slot in a motel’s display rack. He does it because they provide pictorial memories of the good times traveled.

I’d do it because it represents great ideas for marketing to and for my clients.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Since my business is fundamentally steeped in the written word and visual representation, I’m always drawn to commercials, ads, billboards…and brochures.

So when I vacation by visiting some historical or famously natural site, then stay over at a neighboring motel, I too look for the brochures. But I look for them – and at them – because many times they have some appealing elements that I can perhaps apply to the needs of my clients. (In fact, I’ve got one in mind right now to promote yours truly…)

Maybe it’s the layout of the piece. The number of panels or its unusual configuration. How it folds. Is it a horizontal narrative, or does it read vertically. Maybe it’s the fonts used. Maybe it’s a witty or otherwise compelling turn of phrase in the copy. Maybe it’s the unusual treatment of the photos, or it’s the use of illustration or cartoons. Maybe there’s a uniquely designed map as the centerpiece. Maybe a customized die cut gives it a “personality” found nowhere else.

I was at an art gallery in Charleston not long ago, and I picked up a brochure that had the most extraordinary layout folds I had ever seen. It was just a stunning, unusual looking piece, its look transcending the contents within it (notwithstanding that it represented the obvious, creative field of different artists and their works).

Now although I’m writing this as it relates to my ongoing personal research, let me suggest that you consider the “hidden treasure” you may yourself discover when you travel this summer. Is there some cool-looking pamphlet or brochure you may come across that can inspire you to emulate it for your own promotional needs?

Frankly, whether you elect to work with me or someone else on your marketing materials, it’s always welcomed when you’ve done a little research on your own and show your marketing guy/girl, “I think this is pretty neat; can we do something like it?”

And, without compromising any copyright laws, chances are we can.

On another, though not entirely dissimilar note, my local travels recently took me past a house of worship, where the universal message on the outside “marquee” gave me pause…and a smile:

“What’s Missing From Ch_ _ch?”

“U R”

Hey, I told you I’m drawn to the clever turn of phrase…

Joel Kweskin

Words That Count

2007-11-25T22:49:00.000-05:00

According to Robert McCrum, William Cran and Robert Siegel in “The Story of English” (Penguin 1992), “The statistics of English are astonishing. Of all the world’s languages (which now number over 2,700), it is arguably the richest in vocabulary. The compendious Oxford English Dictionary lists about 500,000 words; and a further half million technical and scientific terms remain uncatalogued.”

Author David Wilton adds, in “Wilton’s Word and Phrase Origins,” that “about 200,000 words are in common use today. An educated person has a vocabulary of about 20,000 words and uses about 2,000 in a week's conversation.”

So, with all the wonderful words available to us, why in the name of “multi-tasking” do we continue to use cliché after cliché to describe the “extras” that we bring to our professional capabilities?

Welcome to another addition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Recently, I did a demonstration before my business referral group of how I develop a print ad. To help determine the eventual concept, I interviewed a volunteer “client” by asking him different questions about his business. Sure enough, when asked what differentiates him from his competition, he proudly intoned “Service.” Oh really, I asked. What else? “We care about the customer.” Hmmmm, you don’t say... “And we’re experienced,” he added.

I’m going to take a wild stab at this, but I’ll just bet that isn’t the first time those words have been used to excite and entice a potential customer.

Look, we’re all guilty of falling back on the familiar – in this case, words that have been used ten thousand times before. But the more serious consequence of using these hackneyed phrases is that they simply lose their meaning after a while.

If you say about your business that you provide “ great service,” that you really and truly “care” about your customer, and that no one can match your “experience,” I’ll counter that every time with “SO WHAT?” Every business can, in one facet or another, make that claim! You may BE different from your competition…but you’re not SAYING anything different. (Put it this way -- if text for your brochure, ad or 30-second oral commercial is worded in such generalities that ANYBODY else can put their name at the end of it, it’s time to consider rewriting the piece.)

So how can you sound different? Sound different! Keep a thesaurus next to your computer. Illustrate examples of your “service.” Use case studies that back up how you “care.” Quote testimonials where others have benefited from your “experience.”

You’ll come across as uniquely differentiated, more accomplished and with a better chance of getting your points across.

Now…the flip side of word usage is determining which ones are better equipped than others to be truly persuasive.

Motivational guru Paul Huff notes that the Psychology Department at Yale University has identified 12 words of “extraordinary persuasive power.” They are, in no particular order:

You, Money, Discovery, Easy, Guarantee, Save, Results, New, Proven, Help, Love and, of course, Free.

These words apparently have the subliminal influence to help sell a marketing message. It’s a no-brainer, for example, that when we combine “You” with “Free,” we’re bound to get eyebrows raised and glazed-over eyes to suddenly refocus.

When Gloria Estefan sings of her lament in trying to tell her lover how she feels “but the words get in the way,” we all know how that feels. But we can’t afford, literally, to let that happen when it’s time to sell our products and services.

Whether it’s developing your printed or electronic marketing materials…speaking at a seminar…or simply doing your 30-second spiel at a networking get-together…choose your words well, and wisely. And make them words that count.

Joel Kweskin

E-Zine Education

2007-11-25T22:42:00.000-05:00

They say every pot has its cover.

(Who are “they”? Why, the people who perpetuate clichés, that’s who.)

The point I wish to make, though, is that there is probably an online industry newsletter – or e-zine (Electronic magaZINE) – out there for every individual of his or her respective industry who’s reading MY e-zine right now. That is, a weekly or monthly or quarterly (short) compendium of useful, educational or inspiring articles to remind yourself just how great it is to be in your business, doing what you’re doing.

I’m not asking What E-Zine Are You Writing? I’m asking What E-Zine Are You Reading?!

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

I send out this e-zine of mine with what I hope is informative, as well as entertaining stuff, to get you to think of different ways to market and promote your business. With universal ideas that, for the most part, transcend your particular industry, to appeal to most if not all of your prospects.

But I am not so naïve as to think that I can address your industry armed solely with my finite knowledge of marketing and advertising. That’s where your industry comes in. To supplement a mailing such as mine, with information coming to you from experts in your “line of work.”

For example, I subscribe to three or four different e-zines that deal with MY line of work – advertising, publicity, consulting – that are written by experts in those fields. I sometimes glean what, appropriately, I can…and then filter through my own experience and expertise into dispensing advice from the mantle of JDK Marketing Communications Management.

What are you subscribed to…that focuses on your industry, perhaps gives you further tips on marketing or selling…educates you on the latest trends and developments…perhaps even lists networking or self-promoting opportunities…that comes to you generally free (!) and conveniently across the electronic sound and air waves, through your computer and on to your screen for astonishing ease of display and information gathering (whew)?

Google, for one, has lists and lists of website sources for free e-zines and even hard copy newsletters that service your industry. All you have to do is type in “(Blank) Industry Newsletters,” visit the site(s) and sign up for one. Or two or three, or more. Reading these publications can be like attending free seminars.

To paraphrase Dr. Seuss, Oh the Things You’ll Learn…

Joel Kweskin

Affinity Groups Marketing

2007-11-25T19:33:00.000-05:00

I came across an ad in the sports section of the paper recently that isn’t going to win any awards for aesthetics. But for sheer “targeted” marketing, it may end up doing just fine for its advertiser all the same.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Set against the intensely up-close photo backdrop of a football, the headline reads: PITTSBURGH FANS, WE SPEAK YOUR LANGUAGE!

The columns of copy are split in two with the one on the left a short, alphabetically listed glossary of Pittsburgh (the city) jargon: “Arn” = Iron, as in Iron City; “Gumbans” = rubber bands; “Jumbo” = bologna, and “Kennywood’s Open” = (female readers, close your eyes…) Your fly is unzipped!

So what’s the point of this ad? Well, as it goes on to say in the second column, “Give the agent from da ‘burg a chance to quote your insurance needs.” Yep, it’s from a local representative from one of the nationally known insurance carriers. The guy even goes on to encourage folks to “Stop by for your complimentary ‘Terrible Towel’” that rabid “Stillers” fans enjoy waving at the games.

Mr. Insurance guy knows there are a lot of transplants in Charlotte, many of whom are from the “Arn City.” So, presumably in addition to his more conventional and universal advertising message to everyone else, he’s targeting his “own.” Or, maybe he’s only targeting his own. On a limited budget, nothing wrong with that, either.

Is that something you might consider – target “affinity” groups for your product/service with whom you share some kind of affinity, be it cultural, religious, avocational, whatever? With material specifically “constructed” to fit that marketplace. It’s an old saw that folks like buying from folks they like. But folks might REALLY like buying from folks who share the same interests, the same passions. And what they really like tends to compel them to buy again from that same source.

In the meantime, see you the first Tuesday of next month for another helmet-ful of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Joel Kweskin

Networking...a Different Way

2007-11-25T19:26:00.000-05:00

I’ve been reassessing the roles we play in our networking groups and what we can bring to the table to make these confabs more rewarding…especially for ourselves. And I was reminded of a column that ran in this space a couple of years ago:

Sally Ann Phillips and Todd Paris have the right idea. Sally is the self-described Marketing Maven with Mariner, an IT firm; Todd is a Registered Representative with AXA Advisors, a financial services company. Both these colleague/friends are in business networking groups to which I belong. Independent of each other, however, they came up with a common approach to maximizing their opportunities to gather referrals.

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Rather than – as we all do – orally declare in general terms that their “best customer” is such and such a size, and has sales of X-amount, Sally and Todd respectively produce a sheet of paper to the group. On that sheet (Sally and Todd prepare their own in their own format) they ask for specifics – “Here’s a list of 20 companies in town,” they might ask. “Can you give me the name of ANYONE working at ANY of these places? And I don’t care if they’re the custodian. As long as I can talk to them, and in turn they can lead me to the decision-maker that I need to see…”

Sally and Todd are betting that, if you’re presented with a list of named companies in town, there’s a good chance you know somebody doing something at one of those companies. And if you can supply them with that name, implying that you know that person, well, that’s better than an absolute cold call, isn’t it?

Try it the next time you go to one of your networking groups. Prepare a printed list, not just of industries but also of specific companies, organizations, etc. that you’d like to “get into.” Place a line next to each company with room for a contact name. Any contact name. And push everyone in your group to think hard (it may not be such hard thinking, after all) to fill it out and hand it back to you…no later than the conclusion of your meeting.

Voila! Instant referrals.

That’s better than waiting for those in your group, after they’ve heard your 30-second weekly spiel, to get back to you “later,” isn’t it?

Joel Kweskin

Keeping It Fresh

2007-11-25T19:20:00.000-05:00

Recently, while on vacation at the beach, we bought some “quickie” food items. One of which was a new product by Oreos. Or should I say, yet another new product by Oreo. This one is called “Cakesters” and, like the name implies, it is less hard “cookie” and more soft “cake,” still with the ubiquitous cream spread in the middle.

I was then reminded of a column I wrote in this space a couple of years ago, worth repeating here (while snacking on one of those Cakesters…):

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

I was in the grocery store the other day and noticed the Oreo cookies. Only it wasn’t “just” Oreo cookies.

Sure, there were the “original” Oreo cookies that we all know and love. But, in separate packaging, there was also: Oreo Double-Stuf; Reduced Fat Oreo; Mint n’ Crème Oreo; Mini Oreo; Chocolate Crème Oreo -- whew, let me catch my breath here -- Golden Oreo Original; Fudge Covered Oreo; Fudge Mint Covered Oreo; Golden Oreo Chocolate Crème; Oreo Thin Crisps; and, not to be outdone, Double Delight Oreo Peanut Butter & Chocolate.

Now why would arguably this nation’s most popular cookie product come up with 12 different variations on an otherwise successful approach?

Because they want to either answer demand, or anticipate demand. Because they don’t want to get into a marketplace rut. Because they want to “keep things fresh.” Because they want to challenge themselves. Because they want to stay ahead of the cookie curve. Because with each new product introduction, they become top of mind. Again.

Or, maybe because they just want to stay (way) ahead of Hydrox, the “other” sandwich cookie…which, interestingly enough, was the FIRST “sandwich cookie with a cream filling” to be introduced to a sweet-toothed American public. Yet look what Oreo did to put Hydrox virtually out of our collective conscience.

The parallel to be drawn here presumes to ask the question, what are you doing to “diversify” yourself? Nothing wrong with staying just as you are. “Stick with whomever brought you to the dance,” goes the old saying. But in these volatile times of strong and plentiful competition for what we do for a living, it may behoove us to reach into the old tool box, metaphorically speaking, and see what else we can do to add to our equipment as we build upon our own “product.”

(For example, among the newer “products” at JDK Marketing Communications Management is) a service to help adoption parents create profiles on themselves. This is to help promote their eligibility as parents-to-be to the original birth mother in order for her to decide which family she would select to ultimately parent her child. It’s a fascinating, and touching, process that few people outside of adoption circles know about. I certainly didn’t until recently when a friend of mine in the industry was thoughtful enough to “clue me in.” (Helene Nathanson heads) a home study agency, created to help North Carolina families with pre- and post-adoption requirements:

( http://nathansonadopt.com/ )

And now it’s another way for JDK Marketing Communications to keep our fingers in an ever-growing pie. Or another cookie variation, if you will.

Joel Kweskin

The 12 Basic Ad Formats

2007-11-25T19:15:00.000-05:00

I’ve got some juicy projects I’m working on, and I want to give them my full, focused attention. So I’m going to make this short and sweet. And perhaps even more fun than educational.

Welcome to this edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

Thanks to graphic designer and colleague Tim Faragher for bringing this fascinating subject to my attention…

We all watch commercials. Did you know, according to author Seth Stevenson on Slate.com, that there are but 12 basic ad formats?

There’s:

1. The Demo
2. Show the Problem
3. Symbolize the Problem
4. Symbolize the Benefit
5. The Comparison
6. The Exemplary Story
7. The Benefit Causes Story
8. The Testimonial
9. Ongoing Characters and Celebrities
10. Associated User Imagery
11. Unique Personality Property
12. The Parody, or Borrowed Format

Check out this entertaining video to see what he means. Chances are you’ll be nodding along knowingly as you watch.

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid988327350?bclid=1037705321&bctid=1119288350

Joel Kweskin

Publications

2007-11-25T19:10:00.000-05:00

When was the last time you read “Piedmont Lakes Pilot?” How about “Amps 11?” Or the “Charlotte Hospitality News?” Perhaps you’ve curled up lately with “Apollonaire?”

It might just behoove you to take a closer look at these Charlotte-area magazines (or any metro-area group of pubs, depending on where you reside). Even if you’ve never heard of them before…

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

“Piedmont Lakes Pilot” is for boaters and lakeside dwellers along Lakes Wylie, Norman and other Piedmont-area lakes. “Amps 11” surveys the area music scene in a funky format. “Charlotte Hospitality News” takes a look at the hotel and catering news around town. And “Apollonaire” describes Charlotte’s dining and party scene through the lens of wine aficionados.

Why these publications? Why ANY publications you may not be familiar with? Because, apart from any personal interest you might have in the subject matter, these are opportunities with which to consider advertising your services. To be in a publication where your counterparts…aren’t. And thereby stake a claim in a place where you can target a particular audience. And likely for a lot less than you would have invested to advertise in a larger, more mainstream publication.

Maybe you do websites. Maybe you’re a wine enthusiast, as well. So maybe, while restaurants and their obvious industry brethren are advertising in “Apollonaire,” you can parlay your interests in trying to reach those readers with a service it’s not likely any other website developer thought to take advantage of.

The point is, there are all kinds of publications out there with a targeted reach of audience. Why not target those same folks with your services, even though at first it might seem a stretch. There’s a good chance that you could refine your own target market – at least for the sake of certain publication readers – to zero in on an audience that’s more receptive to you than were you to randomly network among strangers at a cocktail party.

When you consider going into any of these non-mainstream pubs, you’re doing two things: you’re reaching an audience with whom you can point out your shared frames of reference while offering them a service they can quite possibly use, and at the same time locking out your competition…because your competition has probably not even thought to be there!

Joel Kweskin

"Leatherheads"

2007-11-25T17:32:00.000-05:00

What the heck is this guy doing in Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management?

Recently I discussed the importance of self-promotion. Through such tried and true methods as press releases, seminars, event marketing, trade shows and web content.

Why self promotion? Simply because no one else is likely to do it for you, and if marketing has any role in your business development mix – and, of course, it should – you need to let your audiences know about your product or service.

But it doesn’t always have to be about what you do for a living. Sometimes, it can just be about…you.

That is, if you’ve got something universally interesting to talk about. Have you been awarded or even nominated for a significant industry honor? Have you been on a charity mission to some other country? Have you been lifting a hammer lately for Habitat for Humanity? Have you decided to create a scholarship fund in your family’s name?

Then too, the nature of your story doesn’t necessarily have to be a lofty one. Just, again, something truly interesting.

For instance, about that guy at the top of the page… He is starring in and directing “Leatherheads,” a romantic comedy about pro football, circa 1925, portions of which were filmed here in Charlotte this past Spring.

And yours truly got the unique and rewarding opportunity to appear in it!

Want to read an 8-day journal all about it? Go to: http://www.jdkmarketing.biz/leatherheads.htm

And for those of you with your own unique and compelling story to tell…I invite you to send it to me at joel@jdkmarketing.biz If it’s got “legs,” I’ll try to get it into http://www.lifeincharlotte.com/, a new online compendium of news and features celebrating diversity and achievement throughout the Queen City.

Joel Kweskin

Rethinking What/How You Sell

2007-11-25T17:23:00.000-05:00

I saw a parked truck the other day and did a double take. On the side panel, the big sign was for one of those marble slab ice cream products. Of course, that was “take” number one -- I didn’t know that they transported their product anywhere. The second “take” followed the caption at the bottom of the sign: “We Deliver!”

They do?

I didn’t know that!

Welcome to another edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

The fact that an ice cream product usually associated with a forearm-rendered and molded concoction on a cold metal surface at the ice cream product’s place of business is now taking that product off the cold metal surface and somehow transporting it to someone’s home or business is, well, news to me.

Is it news to you, too?

Does it make you rethink that ice cream product…and contemplate using them in that manner sometime in the future?

Recently, I saw friend and networking colleague Justin Lowenberger give a presentation at a business networking group to which we both belong. Justin is an attorney with Ted A. Greve & Associates --justinlowenberger@mydrted.com and http://www.mydrted.net/ -- which primarily specializes in personal injury/accident cases. We all expected him to talk about his role as an attorney. Instead, he talked about un-insured and under-insured motorist coverages and how it pays – quite literally – to have the proper coverage yourself in case you’re ever involved in an accident with another motorist who either has no coverage or not enough coverage.

Here he was, lending his expertise on a subject most people would have thought better served by an insurance agent. But to his credit – and expertise – the subject was actually better served by…himself.

I didn’t know that!

What do you know about any field tangentially connected to your own? Can you write about it, lecture about it, “schmooze” about it? And then connect it, even understatedly, to your primary business? If you can, your perceived value increases to clients, prospects and colleagues and becomes yet another way to market yourself or your business.

(All together now: “I didn’t know that!”)

Joel Kweskin

Chochkes

2007-11-24T16:46:00.000-05:00

Welcome to this edition of Not Your Usual Marketing Tips from JDK Marketing Communications Management.

We all know what they are and we all know what their role is in the marketing mix. But sometimes these chochkes – ad specialty, or promotional items – are taken for granted. And by that I mean too often they’re selected by the marketer without significant thought given to the relationship to either the marketer or the intended recipients.

Friend, colleague, neighbor and ad specialties guru Matt Coben, president of Thunder Road Brandworks, Inc. -- http://thunderroadbrandworks.com/ (704-335-9956) -- takes these trinket doo-dads seriously.

As well he should; according to Wikipedia, it’s an industry with sales in excess of $17 billion. In just a couple of examples noted in the online Business Odyssey Chronicle, 39 percent of people receiving a promotional product could recall the name of the advertiser as long as six months after they received it according to a study. And promotional products used in direct mail solicitations were found to boost response rates by up to 75 percent, in another study.

“Trinkets & Trash, Swag, Chochkes, call them what you will,” says Matt. “Most people think of tee shirts, golf balls, pens and coffee cups. At the end of the day, it is still the representation of your company’s brand. It comes down to this: more time should be spent on how to display your brand than goes into choosing the brand of toilet tissue for the corporate wash room.

“How many times have you expectantly waited while you watched your client/prospect take your gift pen and scratch on that piece of paper until the ink started flowing. Kind of makes the sweat start on your forehead just thinking about it, doesn’t it?

“Why not work with an expert who has taken the time to research who not only makes the pen, but the cartridge as well. If it’s only about price, you may end up being penny wise and pound foolish. After all, everything you put out into the world with your name or logo on it speaks to the quality and integrity of your business.

“But once you’re committed to producing a promotional item, are you prepared for some rep to come to your office, drop a pile of catalogs on your desk and say ‘tell me what you want’..?

“Or, would you rather consult with an industry professional who will present ideas that match your marketing goals? Do yourself a favor and stay away from the ‘trunk slammers,’ and talk to a pro that will take the time to get to know you, your product/service and the marketplace in which you conduct business. A pro who goes to trade shows and stays on top of the latest products, gadgets and trends.”

Words to the wise. Worthy of inscription on a coffee mug.

A very large coffee mug, of course…

Yours truly, for instance, has been sending out annually for the past five years a nifty, compact adhesive calendar, ostensibly for the computer keyboard or atop the monitor, which places my name and company name in front of the recipient on a daily basis. Every time that person sits down at the computer (that’s pretty much every day, and throughout the day, isn’t it?), he or she sees my mini “advertisement.” Along, of course, with every day of every month for ease of scheduling.

Joel Kweskin