Marketing with a One Line Message

Crain’s New York Business’s May 12 edition included an article entitled, “7 Tips for Healthy Viral Marketing Campaigns.”

I’d normally consider the seven tips as rudimentary, but tip 6 mentioned a tactic that many of us overlook.

Hotmail and Yahoo! (the latter is not mentioned in the tip) add a single viral message at the bottom of each Email. It’s simplistic but is one of the best examples of marketing.

Many of us add a chunky, multi-lined signatures within our Emails. I’m going to change it to a one-line message and see how that works.

Perhaps this idea will convert your visitors and readers into buyers.

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May 15, 2008 | Filed Under Email Marketing | Leave a Comment 

Project Planning - A One Year Update

Last year I created a project planning video that showed you how I keep projects organized using a binder, tabs, and customized sheets that you’ll find here.

Has this or another system helped you keep your project planning on track? I’m pleased to report that I’ve not only stayed on course, I’ve also created a system to streamline my recordkeeping.

Tracking receipts and reconciling statements aren’t the most-glamorous duties, but they’re certainly necessary to know if your marketing efforts are progressing.

I placed pocket folders inside of a black binder. Both are available at any office supply store. Each folder holds receipts for each of my accounts; savings, checking, credit cards, and petty cash. I’ve set up two checking accounts for business, so each account has a separate folder, and the same is true for the credit card accounts.

After making a bank deposit or buying a business product, I return to the office and place the receipt into the correct folder. When an expense statement arrives, I can easily pair the receipts with the statement.

I applaud all of you who give this work to an accountant. The more you can delegate to professionals, the better, and the more time you’ll have for marketing. My accountant reviews the accounts every six months or whenever I have a question about revenue or expenses.

My hope is that this information encourages you to maintain better order in your office so that you can focus on your marketing plan. I’m far from perfect when it comes to organization, but I know that the few orderly steps I put in place makes business life much easier.

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May 14, 2008 | Filed Under Solo Housekeeping, Video Tips | Leave a Comment 

Promote Your News with Magazine Editorial Calendars

Do you know that many print publications display their editorial calendars online?

This feature is mainly for advertisers who want their ads placed in specific issues, but reading what magazines are planning can be a marketing coup for you.

An editorial calendar details the information, articles, stories, and columns that will appear in each magazine issue. I explain this opportunity in my marketing book, encouraging you to take full advantage of this schedule as part of your own planning.

Here’s an example of how to turn these magazine calendars into your free promotion machine.

Gift Shop Magazine is a popular publication for retail store owners. Its Web site includes an editorial calendar. Anyone who’s interested in promoting their products or services to that industry will:

1. Print a copy of the calendar.
2. Review it for opportunities to send releases to the editorial staff via Email and/or sample products via postal mail before an editorial deadline date.

When I saw Gift Shop Magazine’s calendar earlier this year, it included editorial deadline dates, but the current calendar does not. If this is true for the publications you want to contact, call the magazine and ask an advertising staff member for the dates.

This marketing opportunity has helped me receive publicity in many publications. I do exactly what’s outlined above (in the two-step process), placing editorial deadlines on my calendar, and contacting the magazine’s editor with a news story specific to a forthcoming issue.

You’ll find more information about contacting editors on the press release pages.

Is this a marketing option you’ll add to your calendar?

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May 13, 2008 | Filed Under Marketing News, Online Ideas | Leave a Comment 

Uncover What Clients Want by Reading What They Read

Subscribing to the trade magazines your clients read proves to make marketing easier.

Many of the articles provide a tutorial on how to put your products and services into their hands and convince similar industry participants to buy, too.

For example, the April 21st edition of Meeting News includes a section that showcases convention centers in Myrtle Beach, Las Vegas, Memphis, and San Antonio.

Each showcase includes the convention center’s statistics, guest specialties, and contact person. That’s a ton of information to pursue a relationship with the center or ancillary partners.

Reading the same publications as your clients has the ability to put your marketing campaigns on a new and profitable platform.

The next time you speak with clients, ask each of them which magazines arrive in their mailbox so that you can subscribe to the same.

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May 12, 2008 | Filed Under Customer Connections, Offline Ideas | Leave a Comment 

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