Magnetic Light-Up Memo Board

For anyone who markets to the home this is item is a sure way to get your name in front of a client in a creative and useful way. This wipe off magnetic memo board includes a dry erase marker and 3 AAA batteries for immediate promotional use. Your clients and prospects can use this to leave messages on the fridge or desk. Plus, wth the blue pulsing light activated their note will never go unnoticed.

Home services companies can use this as a leave behind product after or before conducting business. People who market to the office demographic can write a quick “thank-you” note and send this to their favorite prospect or client. Eithier way your clients will love to use this product and will have your name advertised over and over again.

Click here to order.

Once I get video blogging  going maybe I will show demonstration of this marketing item.

Like other marketing trends, products or solutions it is a good idea to first decide what your objectives are in using that medium. There are many key ways a business or individual can use Twitter from a marketing stand point. 

1.) Build Sales

Controversially, you could fill your tweets with direct promotions and sales pitches, if the majority of your followers are looking for that. However, many people find this annoying and you may end up losing many followers. An idea would be to direct your current customers to follow you on Twitter for news and promotions only available from that site. Please comment if you have seen results from this type of Twittering. 

2.) Build Rapport

Another usage would be to establish a positive reputation through Twittering  useful information, links and tools. This will establish you as a valuable resource and a friendly expert in your profession. 

3.) Build Relationships

Comment and follow others on Twitter to make online relationships that could develop referral marketing. Ask questions of others and solicit helpful advise and people  will begin to look to you.

4.) Build Customer Service

Amazingly many companies are using Twitter as a customer service tool. Customers post questions and comments for the company to service. For those brave enough and open to that level of transparency this is a great way for others to see just how great a company you are by your customer service.

The Idea Chef had recently began to Twitter. Follow us at @ideachef.

I am interested in the marketing results Twitter has generated for others. If you have any great success stories leave a comment on this blog.

Have you every invited a guest into your home and over coffee or a nice home cooked meal shared about your life and got to know each a bit better? Perhaps the relationship would continue after that night and you would keep in touch just to see how things were going or to inquire about their views and opinions. This is similar to your social networking sites such as MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn. They connect and invite people into your world and allow them to get to know you better. Use these sites to build friendship and trust.

Twittering these days?  Twitter is similar to walking down the grocery aisle and meeting a familiar aqantince or friend for  a short, bottom-line on how things are going. You don’t need a whole life’s story just the bare bones and quick hello. Use these sites to update clients and friends on things that you would tell them about in passing. This medium is greatly abused by useless information posts.

Small to medium size bookstores now have the perfect product to position themselves in a way they never have before all thanks to great products and creative packaging. Sometimes all it takes is an innovative brand and a labor of love to generate a valuable solution. This brand is expanded by three aspects: 1.) Great product message 2.) Clever packaging and categories 3.) Quality product.

 1.) Great Product Message

In order to use  niche branding effectively  you must first discover the market and demographic you are trying to reach. Research their needs and immerse yourself in how your product can speak to that market in a creative way. For Book Brew our messages include, “What Every Good Book Deserves” and “Customers Come Back for Book Brew.” The first speaks to the general market the other demonstrates what our wholesale offerings are developed for.

2.) Clever Packaging and Labels

This unique selling position (USP) must carry through all aspects of the offering. Using products that directly relate to the brand base Book Brew Coffee has done a wonderfully job supporting their brand. With coffee flavors such as, Bestseller’s Blender, Reader’s Choice, and Dictionary Decaf it’s not hard to guess who this product is for.

3.) Quality Product

Back you brand with quality products and services. Book Brew’s coffee has been highly praised for it’s hand roasted flavor and extreme quality difference. Coupled with a dynamic and easy to use website and personal service make up this brand’s quality. Furthermore, we have already expanded our catalog to include professional equipment and supplies for stores that want to serve our coffee or espresso.

Do you currently have a quality product or service that you can cleverly brand to fit a niche market’s need? Doing right the first time will pay off. Oh, and log on today and order some of our coffee and let me know what you think of it.

However,  the attending host of the booth eagerly explained to me the thrust of the program.

Every year SeaChanger exhibits at a promidoment conference for their industry. And every year they hand out rubber ducks, each dressed in a different theme. Previous years the company handed out rubber ducks in scuba gear and even disco. The second part to the promotion  is that a member of their team will dress in the same outfit as the duck and work the show. This oddball promotion has worked well to attract attention since every year people come back to add to their collection of ducks in the series.

Next time you have a tradeshow event consider how you can use promotional products to attract attention and stay on the forefront of people’s minds long after the show. An experienced and creative promotional advisor can assist you in compiling a similar program.

WrapMail

Here is what the inventors have to say about their product:

Do you want your brand and message in the hands of your customers and prospects 365 days a year?

egrips® Non-Slip Strips are the ONLY promotional product that deliver such an opportunity!

egrips® Non-Slip Strips puts your brand and information in the hands of your customers 365 days a year. This amazing and helpful product SOLVES A PROBLEM most of us have when we set our phone down . . . it vibrates off the dashboard and slides around the car. This strip keeps phones, iPods, and other handheld electronic devices where you put them!

Customers and prospects will put your logo and information on their handheld devices and they won’t take it off! … AND they will appreciate and thank you every day!

As a promotional item you can easily mail and hand this out–and it works!

In the summer of 2008, 465 businesspeople in 4 states were interviewed regarding promotional products they had received. What was the purpose? They wanted to understand how promotional products (sometimes referred to as imprinted junk) influenced end-users’ purchasing decisions, determine the number of impressions on these products, and the Cost Per Impression (CPI) as they stacked up to other popular advertising media. The results demonstrated that promotional products are anything but junk and renewed my enthusiasm for these popular marketing tools!

Here are some highlights from the results:

Number of Impressions: How many times were these items worn or used per month and the average number of people that came in contact with that user:

Bags = 1,038 x per month

Shirts = 365 x per month

Writing Instruments = 363 x per month

Desk & Office Accessories = 294 x per month

Calendars = 227 x per month

Respondents were able to identify the advertiser the vast majority of the time ( 84%!).

CPI (Cost Per Impression) as compared to other advertising media:

Promotional Products = $0.004 average CPI

Television Ads = $0.007 (Cable) – $0.019 (Prime Time)

National Magazine = $0.033

Spot Radio = $0.005

Newspaper Ad = $.019

Billboard = $0.003

Not only do you get loads  of impressions out of promotional products, the cost to get that impression is very low! Give it a try on your next promotion. Click here to browse promotional ideas.

They say that first impressions are the most important. People  judge you by your first contact. I want to share with you some ideas on how you can be more impressionable.

1.) Marketing Materials: The quality of your business card, brochure, or flyer says a ton about the standards of how you do business. If your marketing materials are home-printed or look like something Uncle Morris in prison put together, your first impression will be creamed by the your competitors, who invest in quality materials. We recently did a business card project for client where we developed a redesign from his previous materials. Once he began handing them out he notice a huge difference in his sales leads. One client actually told him that he was going to use his service solely based on the quality of his business card! Now, that’s what I call a good impression. Click here to see the professional designs we’ve created. 

2.) Give a Gift: Everyone is friends to someone who gives. Be generous with your first impression by sending out a nice promotional item. These may seem bit gimmicky, but it works! Let’s face it: How many times have you received a nice gift in the mail or in person right before a cold call? Not often! Not only will you see a dramatic difference in your sales leads but you’ll notice a shift in how prospects treat you. Who can be rude to someone who just gave them something with a nice perceived value? It’s the law of reciprocity, responding to a positive action with another positive action. Find a unique gift for your next promotion by visiting our LogoMall.

3.) Introducing Yourself: When you are at networking functions or meeting prospects for the first time in person, how do you present what you do? Do you give off smoke signals that you are out to sell them something or do you introduce the need you fulfill? Be clever with it and you will soon be engaged in conversation with that person. I was at a Chamber event where we all had a chance to mingle and get to know one another. I was asked the popular question: “What do you do?” To that I answered, “I help people spend more time on the golf course.” I received some smiles and soon started talking about how we use promotional programs to help grow businesses so that they can spend more time doing the things that they enjoy.

Remember, first impressions are critical to the success of generating quality prospects. Plus, have a little fun with it, keep it professional, and it will make marketing your business more impressionable.