Fun Marketing Promotion Ideas for May!

April 17th, 2010 by elizabethdmrx No comments »

May has a variety of special days that can be used to promote any business with fun marketing campaigns. And help you ease into your summer marketing promotions.

I like National Barbecue Month. You can throw a BBQ for your best customers to show how much you appreciate their business.


Monthly Campaigns:

National Barbecue Month – Yummy! Think of the tasty marketing ideas.
National Hamburger Month
National Egg Month
National Salsa Month
Have a Salsa competition – food or dancing!
National Salad Month
National Chocolate Custard Month
National Strawberry Month
Where’s the whipped cream?

Special Week Campaigns:

May 1-7 National Raisin Week
May 3-9 National Herb Week – Give your clients packets of seeds to grow herbs.
Week 1

May 1 National Chocolate Parfait Day
May 3 National Raspberry Popover Day
May 3 National Chocolate Custard Day
May 4 National Candied Orange Peel Day
May 4 National Hoagie Day
May 6 National Crepe Suzette Day
May 7 National Roast Leg of Lamb Day
May 8 National Coconut Cream Pie Day

Week 2
May 12 National Nutty Fudge Day
May 13 National Apple Pie Day
May 14 National Buttermilk Biscuit Day

Week 3

May 17 National Cherry Cobbler Day
May 18 National Cheese Souffle Day
May 19 National Devil’s Food Cake Day
May 20 National Quiche Lorraine Day
May 22 National Vanilla Pudding Day
May 23 National Taffy Day

Week 4

May 24 National Escargot Day
May 25 National Brown-Bag-It Day
May 26 National Blueberry Cheesecake Day
Have a bake-off promotion?
May 31 National Macaroon Day
Love this day for a promotion

I have an easy recipe to back your own macaroons. You can give them to your customers in decorative gift bags. Or just have them on your counter by the register for people to enjoy. Or have some special where they bring in a coupon and get a free macaroon.

Here’s my recipe for Coconut Macaroons

Ingredients:

1 can of sweetened condensed milk (14 oz can)
14 oz bag of Shredded coconut – sweetened or unsweetened
6 tablespoons of flour
1 tsp of Vanilla extract – imitation Vanilla is fine
(optional) 1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips – I like the mini chips the best
Parchment paper for cookie sheet.

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Mix the condensed milk, vanilla and flour in a bowl. Add shredded coconut slowly. I use a hand mixer which is why you want to add the coconut slowly so the mixer doesn’t clog up. Once everything is mixed you can add the cup of chocolate chips into the batch.

Put parchment paper on a cookie sheet. If you don’t the macaroons will stick to the cookie sheet and crumble apart when you try to remove them from the cookie sheet.

Drop scoops of cookie mixture on parchment paper cover cookie sheet in sizes you want. I like to use a cookie scoop dropper tool to make it easy to make the cookies.

Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes depending on how hot your oven cookies. If they start to turn golden brown take the cookies out of the oven.

I like to lift of the parchment paper with the cookies still on it and place it on a wire rack to cool. I put new parchment paper on the cookie sheet and drop more cookie mixture on the sheet. Repeat until mixture is gone and you have a pile of delicious macaroons.

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Want to Market to Women?

April 16th, 2010 by elizabethdmrx No comments »

Check out the Central Coast Women’s Conference on April 29th. There will be over 30 vendor booths on site and some valuable presentations. Check out the details of the presentation by the Founder and Coordinator of the event:

Simple, Low Cost Marketing Ideas that REALLY Work in Any Economy (Both on or off the Internet)
And Strategic Steps to USE What You Learn at the Conference

Consuelo Meux, Ph.D., is the Founder and Coordinator of the Central Coast Women’s Conference Series. Dr. Meux is an expert in power marketing and networking techniques that help businesses grow a client list fast. Her additional expertise is in leadership, organization and systems development and writing coach.

Her clients praise her ability to provide innovative cutting edge concepts that result is increased income and new opportunities for their business. “A business or organization doesn’t have to fall victim to the changes in the economy when the leadership understands market trends, innovative marketing techniques and consumer needs.”
A former Peace Corps Volunteer, Consuelo has an international perspective from her travels and work in Africa, Europe, Mexico and most US States. She’s been a Small Business Analyst with California State University Fresno, Assistant Manager of the Central California Small Business Development Center, and owner of an independent Marketing Consulting Firm.

Consuelo earned her PhD in Human and Organization Systems and facilitates doctoral programs in organization development with the University of Phoenix online and has taught advertising and marketing courses at Cuesta College. Her book “Yes I CAN Success Online: 5-Easy Steps to Your Confident Online Business Presence” sold out the first printing in six weeks.

Want to find out how to register check here:

I’ll see you there!

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Reese’s Gets Customers Coming Back for More!

April 16th, 2010 by elizabethdmrx No comments »

Every so often I get these cravings for peanut butter and chocolate so I buy Reese’s peanut butter cups. I noticed writing on the bottom of the card stock that holds the cups in place as I finished the last cup. See the photo below:

The comment was cheerful and then the end was an ingenious way on Hershey’s  part to get you to buy more Reese’s candy.  I read it and was moved to buy more. The candy was so yummy I think I even went specifically to the store just to buy more Reese’s peanut butter cups.

How’s that for copy that moves the customer to action? It had a positive message: “Have a perfect day” and “This is not an empty package but a REMINDER TO GET MORE”, how cool is that? I had been feeling sad that my candy was finished until I read the message on the card. Then I was moved to buy more peanut butter cups.

Hershey’s came up with an excellent and tasty way to encourage more sales. Now that’s what I call direct response marketing at its best! I had more peanut butter cups to enjoy and Hershey’s had more of my money. =) A win/win situation!

What are you doing to get your customers wanting more of your goods and services? Any notes on your invoices, sales receipts or follow up contacts encouraging them to do even more business with you?

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Does Your Voicemail Get You Clients? Time to Change That!

April 7th, 2010 by elizabethdmrx No comments »


By Fabienne Fredrickson

If you’re serious about attracting clients consistently, I believe you should use every single piece of marketing “real estate” you can. Whether you’ve been in business for one year or 22 years, when you’re marketing your business, you want to have systems in place that PULL in clients without you having to do much to make it happen.

It can even be as “little” as using your outgoing voice mail as a Client Attraction tool. One of the key things you can do to PULL people in that most people in business do not do, especially when they’re working from home, is have an outgoing message on your voice mail or answering machine that describes exactly what you do, for whom, and what results they can expect.

The idea here is to have your voice explain what you do and how to give you referrals . So, instead of saying, “Hello, it’s Mary, leave a message,” you can say, “Hello, it’s Mary of so-and-so business, helping (insert target audience) who struggle with (insert common problem) achieve more (desired outcome).”

Once they know exactly what you do and for whom, don’t forget to list the best ways to reach you (other than phone) : your e-mail, your website, and your tag line. Oh, and don’t forget to include a call to action, like inviting them to visit your website and signing up for something. There are lots of different ways you can use your voice mail outgoing message as a way to get new clients. Remember to keep it pretty short or people will not want to call back.

You’d be surprised how many people over the years became my client, when all they had originally was my phone number. As a result of the voicemail, they all told me they went onto the website, signed up for the ezine, attended teleclasses, and after a while, wrote in to say they were ready to work with me. Not bad for a simple voicemail message!

My motto around marketing real estate? “If you’ve got it anyway, use it to attract clients!”

Your Client Attraction Assignment:

Create an outgoing message that can also act as a marketing tool, if it is brief. Include your tagline and e-mail address if it is easy to remember, direct callers to your website, and make sure to tell them about your newsletter or list any upcoming workshops you are promoting. You’ll not only impress callers, you might just get a few new clients out of it.

© 2010 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System , the proven step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to attract more clients, in record time…guaranteed. To get your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and receive her weekly marketing & success mindset articles on attracting more high-paying clients and dramatically increasing your income, visit www.ClientAttraction.com .

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April Brings More Audacious Marketing Ideas

April 6th, 2010 by elizabethdmrx No comments »


Need new ways to get your clients a reason to spend money? There are enough special days in April to cover any business and any target market.

National Cordon Bleu Day can work for upscale restaurants. Jelly Bean Day for family oriented promotions. Chocolate Mousse Day for your chocolate loving customers.

Or if you want a promotion that lasts all month, check out the four different national month topics:

National Soft Pretzel Month – Who doesn’t like a soft pretzel?

National Soy Foods Month – Are you targeting Vegans? Use this for your promotions.
National Fresh Celery Month – Healthy snack for your customers.

National Pecan Month – Pies and more. What yummy promotions can you dream up?

Week 1
Sorry I forgot to post this earlier. Week one is gone. But you still have 4 weeks left.

April 1 National Sourdough Bread Day
April 2 National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day
April 3 National Chocolate Mousse Day
April 4 National Cordon Bleu Day

Week 2

April 5 National Raisin and Spice Bar Day
April 6 National Caramel Popcorn Day
April 7 National Coffee Cake Day
April 8 National Empanada Day
April 9 National Chinese Almond Cookie Day
April 10 National Cinnamon Crescent Day
April 11 National Cheese Fondue Day

Week 3

April 12 National Licorice Day
April 13 National Peach Cobbler Day
April 14 National Pecan Day
April 15 National Glazed Ham Day
April 16 National Eggs Benedict Day
April 16 National Baked Ham with Pineapple Day
April 17 National Cheeseball Day
April 18 National Animal Crackers Day

Week 4

April 20 National Pineapple Upside-down Cake Day
April 21 National Chocolate-Covered Cashews Day
April 22 National Jelly Bean Day
April 23 National Cherry Cheesecake Day
Ohhh, yum.
April 24 National Pigs-in-a-Blanket Day
Sound like fun!
April 25 National Zucchini Bread Day

Week 5

April 26 National Pretzel Day
April 27 National Prime Rib Day
April 28 National Blueberry Pie Day
April 29 National Shrimp Scampi Day
April 30 National Oatmeal Cookie Day

Ok, with all these special days to fill your April marketing calendar let me know which ones you use.

Hmm, Now National Prime Rib Day sounds good. Must be time for lunch.

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Are There Too Many Acronyms In Your Marketing Message?

April 5th, 2010 by elizabethdmrx No comments »

Beware of using too much industry jargon in your copy if your customers are not familiar with it. They may end up interpreting it like the gal in the Dilbert comic above.

The problem with that is you won’t make the sale because the prospect won’t have a clue what they should buy. Keep the content clear and easy to understand.

Even when targeting a specific market familiar with industry lingo be careful with using too many acronyms. It will make the copy difficult to read and make the reader eager to move on from your marketing messages.

You don’t want the customer so busy trying to sort it all out in his mental dictionary and missing the benefits of your goods or services in the process.

Keep your marketing messages from getting stuck in a Dilbertesque zone of lost sales.

If you need help with your website content consider having Direct Marketing Rx do content audit of your site to uncover its strengths and weaknesses.

You’ll get an extensive report showing the results of a 31 point checklist on the health of your website. You’ll find out if you’re using the 5 components of web content that works.  And if your website is easy to navigate and user friendly.

Contact Us and get your prescription for a website content that sells today!

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Squeeze Out One Last Marketing Opportunity with Your Old Business Cards

April 4th, 2010 by elizabethdmrx No comments »

Do you have old business cards that you don’t know what to do with besides dump them in the recycle bin? Wait, there’s a promotional opportunity for your business in those old cards.

Have a card tossing contest for you customers where they win prizes. You could send out an email, Tweet and post a notice on your Facebook fan page to let you customers know about the event. Really promote and have specials going on the day of the event.

Or if you don’t want your customers tossing your business cards create a competition among your employees and have your customers come and watch.

Maybe even post videos of your employees prepping for the competition on your website and YouTube. Give the employees competition nicknames like Discount Rustler or Super Sales Rep. See how I had the promoting your business benefits to your customers? Do that and maybe even end up with a new brand character.

Whatever you decide to do turn it into a marketing event and offer special prices on competition days. It could turn into an ongoing promotion for a few weeks or months or an annual event that customers look forward to seeing.

Be sure to be safe during the competitions. You may want to have safety goggles for competitors to wear. Or make it an easy card toss like those toss a ping pong ball into the goldfish bowl games you see at Fairs and Carnivals. Turn it into a toss the business card into recycle bins at various distances and each distance gets an increasingly better prize or discount.

Check out this video of the Master Business Card Thrower to get some ideas. It’s worth the 2 minutes to watch it. I wonder how much practice the guy had to do. You’ll never look at your business card the same way again.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVq0HdiM-Ok&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1]

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Last Minute Ideas for Getting Business during Tax Season

March 29th, 2010 by elizabethdmrx No comments »

Most dread the April 15th deadline to file taxes. But you can turn it around and help your customers relax and making money too!

Have an “EZ” Discount – Use the tax form numbers as promo codes when ordering for example 1040EZ.  If you have a product you can price at $10.40 you can offer the special price good on April 15th only.

“Enjoy Your Refund” Promotion – Have a special sale for your customers who filed their taxes early and are ready to spend the cash the got back.  Have a follow-up sale a few weeks later for the people who filed at the last-minute and won’t have their refund by April 15th. Offer it to early birds too and get them spending twice.

Relieve the Stress of Paying the IRS –   Offer special coupons for a spa day, special dinner or box of chocolates. Encourage your customers to have a relaxing treat of their choice on April 15th.  Send an email to your best customers to get them spending. Or even entice new prospects to your business.

15% off Discount – Make April 15th a positive date not a bad one by offering 15% off purchases made.   Send out a quick email or post on your blog about the special discount only available until midnight on April 15th and pick up some extra sales on a potentially slow business day.

Use these last minute ideas to bring in extra sales on Tax Day April 15th.

Meanwhile enjoy this YouTube video of the Taxman by the Beatles while you come up with your own April 15th Tax Day promotions:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8y2XLIitX8o&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b]

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Bad Customer Service Equals Bad Word of Mouth

March 17th, 2010 by elizabethdmrx No comments »

If you give your customers the run around when they have a problem you could be ruining your reputation. Think of Kevin Smith and his outraged tweets when he was kicked off Southwest Airlines. Good customer service could’ve dealt with the situation in a way that left Mr. Smith happy with the airline.

That’s not the only story of bad customer service. Musician Dave Carrol’s guitar was broken by United Airlines and it took months to get any kind of resolution.

It’s been almost two years and his YouTube video is still getting hits. United made a poor customer service choice they won’t forget. Neither will anyone else with this music video written by a customer done wrong.

Even though he made follow up videos describing the resolution this original one is forever out there showing all potential customers why they should avoid an airline with bad customer service. Treat your customers with respect and avoid bad word of mouth that lingers forever on the Internet.

Why not give your customers such great service they make a video about the experience.

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