Finding business everywhere

It has been entirely too long since my last post but my excuse is very legitimate. I've been on vacation - well sort of. My family and I had the opportunity to rent a house at the beach for a month. Being self employed and fairly mobile, I transported my office to the beach location and resumed business as normal. Well, as normal as it can be with a Gulf full of water across the street and a really cool boat beckoning in the canal right out front. Anyway, I digress. During this relocation exercise, I discovered that opening your mouth can get you new business. Everyone thinks of networking while at Chamber of Commerce functions, but how many think about it when they are sweaty and greased up with sunscreen - no makeup and let's face it, a little smelly? This post is primarily for my female readers. Males don't have much of a problem getting sweaty and asking for business. Females on the other hand loathe being caught in ugly moments. We feel the need to dazzle with our brilliance as well as our well-groomed good looks. Men aren't all that concerned usually. Take Ed Bonkowski for example. He's a highly successful Real Estate Broker, contractor and property manager who happened to rent our house to us. I spoke up soon after I met him and told him what I did. I dropped a few names, made a few relevant comments about his industry and he immediately started feeding me business. Now, it doesn't always work this way. There are definitely some factors that must be in play. You have to actually HAVE some industry knowledge before you can speak it. You also can't be pushy - you're on vacation afterall. But a saavy business person will see past the sweat and Coppertone and listen to the wisdom. I'm hoping this relationship develops into a long-lasting friendship. I think we can help each other in our quest for success. The learning moment for the day is: Don't miss those networking opportunities. You can be effective even if you aren't dressed to kill.

Careful of Your Allies

Anyone reading this or any of my facebook entries of late would know that my garage door opener has been the bane of my existence and I've blamed Sears for my heartburn. I have to make an amendment. After stewing about my situation and a little goding from my husband, I called Customer Service and complained. She filed a complaint and said someone would get back to me. They didn't. I called again and was referred to a different number. Ready to get frustrated, I came across a man named Steven. I explained my frustrations and he told me not to worry, Sears would make it right. "Sure" thought I. "I'll believe it when I see it." He ran some numbers and told me that he was authorized to make it right to the tune of up to $150 for labor and $100 for parts. WOW. That means all told, instead of $244, I only have to pay $45. Believe it or not, the math does really work. Parts were more expensive than $100 and labor was less expensive than $150. Regardless, Sears restored my faith in them as a company.

However, if anyone from Sears is reading this, and anyone else running a business in these tough economic times is interested in keeping customers, please take this warning. Be careful who you ally with when they are promoting your brand. Your brand is you. Perception of your brand is reality. A&E is the name of the company performing the repairs on my garage door opener, but in my mind, it was Sears. Yes, Sears came through and made me happy. ( I think...the part hasn't arrived yet) BUT if Sears was a little more careful with the stewards of their brand, they never would have had an unhappy customer in the first place. Don't let anyone sully the good name of your brand. You've worked hard to make it solid and trustworthy.

On the other hand, Precision Garage doors came out to fix the cords on my door. The cords were damaged when we manually raised and lowered the door. Related to the lightening - not exactly, but it's a secondary problem. If the door was working, we wouldn't have been raising and lowering it manually and probably wouldn't have messed up the cords. Either way, the tech came out in a 2-hour time period, told me what was wrong. Told me how much it was going to cost, repaired it and charged me for what it he said it was going to cost. Way to go Precision. Do what you say you are going to do and you'll have a loyal customer.

Sex sells and I've been screwed

It's probably not best to write a blog when you are totally frustrated. But then again, most people can get a good laugh at another's expense. And expense is what we're talking about here. Today's blog is about warrantees, protection and other marketing strategies that add money to the retailer's pocket and remove it from your own. Now, as a general rule, I NEVER buy extended warrantees. I worked in furniture too long. I know that extended warrantees rarely cover much more than the regular manufacturers warrantee and I also know that salespeople get perks for selling them. Therefore, they make it seem like a must have. I usually say, "Nah" I'll just replace it if it goes two years from now. Of course it will go after the warrantee runs out anyway regarless of the timeframe.

Here's where I make an exception. Electricity. Surge protection. This truly IS a must-have. See, if you live in Florida, chances are great that lightening will strike somewhere near your house eliminating every valuable piece of equipment that you own. For $4/month, my investment has paid off in dividends. Last year, they paid me the money it would have taken to replace my 4 year old computer. Of course, I ended up buying an additional surge protector, an additional laptop and tons of back up software just to make sure it didn't happen again. It did. Last Thursday, God threw a humongous fireball in the vicinity of my house and zappo. There goes the equipment again. Thankfully, Microware - run by technogeek extraordinaire Darius Joseph - was able to save my data and is getting me a new motherboard. I don't anticipate any screwing from Darius as I've done business with him before and know he is an upstanding guy.

The screwing comes from Sears. That's right. You recognize the name right? You probably also recognize the name Craftsman, right? Your dad had Craftsman screwdrivers and hammers. If one of those suckers broke, Sears replaced it with no questions asked and no paperwork to fill out. Guaranteed for life! Therefore, I bought a Craftsman Garage Door Opener. Fine piece of equipment. Works great. Until said fireball was dropped in the vicinity. So I call Sears confident that Craftsman would cover this. Uh, no. "You didn't buy the extended warrantee and it's now 2 years old. Manufacturer's warrantee is only a year." No problem, I thought. FPL, my trusted Surge protector will pay for it. So we set up a service call.

The cost of the service call is $65. Well, $65 is better than the $150 it would take to replace it. The sensors appear to be bad, so how expensive can it really be? Uh, really expensive. See, the sensors are $50 and the labor is $104. Um, I could have bought a new unit by now. BUT if I buy a new unit, I STILL have to pay the $65 for the service call. Oh well, FPL will pay for it anyway, right. Go ahead, put the sensors in. I'll take the hit and get reimbursed. OK, sensors are in. Uh, bad news. The motherboard is also fried. Couldn't tell that until the sensors were in. That'll be 80 additional bucks maam and the piece is on order. Could be two weeks...or less of course. If I don't get the motherboard, I STILL have to pay the $150 it cost to install the worthless sensors...AND a new unit. That would be $300 for a garage door opener that cost $150. For the bargain basement price of $244 I will someday have a garage door that opens and closes again with the touch of a button. Could be three or four days. Could be two weeks. Who knows?

Luckily, this story should still have a happy ending. Last time we submitted a claim to FPL, we received a check from Assurant Solutions just as they promised. Both pieces of equipment were damaged as a result of a power surge which is covered by $4 a month. Assuming I get reimbursed as last time, I may be singing the praises of FPL in a future blog. In the meantime, for all my Florida readers - GET THAT SURGE PROTECTION TODAY!!! Don't wait. A migraine headache that lasts for at least a couple of weeks is just a thunderstorm away.

And my other piece of advice, make sure you have a good computer geek on call 24/7. Darius of Microware is my hero. You can shop his prices and may find something cheaper. BUT there is a peace of mind cost that can't be compared. I know Darius will retrieve all of my data. I know he will get the motherboard, harddrive and whatever other computer intestines he removed back into that tower within the week. He was even going to lend me a laptop when mine froze the next day, but instead, he fixed the laptop. I probably would have had a nervous breakdown this week if it wasn't for him. He has the perfect personality for the job too. When he was retrieving my Quickbooks, he was so calm.
"What did you name your QB file?"
"uhhh, I don't know. Is that important"
"Let me keep looking for it"
"Is it this?"
"No"
"How about this one?"
"No"
This conversation went on for about 20 minutes. My stomach was in knots. He was calm as a cucumber. He never once said, "You idiot, why don't you know the name of your QB file?"

I know it's all on my external harddrive, but it would have been a pain to get it extracted. Instead, Darius patiently went through the process and found my file. There's something about a good computer geek. They just don't get riled up. They are masters at putting freaked out business owners at ease.

Today's lessons: Get warrantee protection against electricity surges; DON'T call Sears for customer service repairs; GET a good computer geek (like Darius at Microware 239-936-4535); Do invest in a bottle of valium in the event of a power outage. It also helps to have some computer geeks as friends in case Darius is busy and can't get back to you for 5 minutes. Steve Bedford was instrumental in talking me off the ledge and I thank him for that.

The ol' Bait and Switch Worked for Apple!

There I was minding my own business, doing my own research, asking a million and one questions and I was finally convinced. Blackberry was the way to go. I use my phone for business. I don't play games on my phone. I don't even text if I don't have to. I wanted something simple that I could check email and easily respond. "Blackberry" they all said. "Yes, the iPhone is really cool, but it's not really all that great for business and email," they all added.

Armed with that information, ignoring the snide comments from my facebook friends who laughed at the mere mention of Blackberries when the almighty iPhone was in the same room, I went to the trusty AT&T store to take one more look at the Blackberries and figure out if I needed the $99 or the $199 one that had just come out. The clever salesperson told me that in fact, I could get an iPhone for $199 as well and it did everything the Blackberry did...but more.
Hmmm. But what about the difficulty in texting on that flat screen. "You get used to it." He said. Then he told me how he cried when he lost his iPhone and had to convert back to the Blackberry due to financial difficulties (I assume the $99 fit his bill) As he wiped a tear in memory of his iPhone, I was almost convinced that I should at least consider the $199 iPhone even though I had no original intentions of spending $199 for the Blackberry.

The salesman carefully placed it in my hands and made it do things I couldn't even begin to imagine. The thing can turn itself into a FLASHLIGHT for heaven's sake. Suddenly, angel choirs started to sing (I think it's a sales tactic at the AT&T store) and a bright light started to eminate from this little piece of equipment that I used to call a cell phone. This mini computer was nothing short of amazing. (SCRATCH - insert loud sound like an album being scratched by a needle.) BUT, I don't want to pay $199 for a phone. I'm too cheap. Let me go home and think about this for a day or two and I'll be back to buy the Blackberry as I originally planned.

Then, the news broke. In its unusual and unexpected way, Apple put the cart before the horse and started offering its NEW AND IMPROVED iPhone for $199 and its old boring one (that I held in my hand just hours before) was now $99.

I ran, didn't walk (well, actually drove) to the AT&T store certain that there would be a crush of people. I told the man, "I want the iPhone!" Which one? Uh, duh, of COURSE the $99. Every thought or consideration I ever had about the Blackberry went right out the window. I never even gave it a second thought. Brilliant marketing technique coupled with perfect timing and Apple got the sale that Blackberry wanted. Now, I'm an aging GenXr learning how to use my cool new phone. My few Blackberry friends (who are the same age) are waiting anxiously for my verdict to see if they too could be cool enough to have an iPhone. Apple has made this one of the coolest products on the planet that even a 40 something technobackwards girl can get her arms around.

The marketing lesson to be learned? Timing is everything and if you're going to hype something around generation Xrs, you better start with their friends. In the end, that's really what made me change my mind. The facebook chatter was quite convincing. Use social networking to sell your brand, then put it on sale and create a sense of demand...it will be a winner! oops, my iPhone is vibrating. I think it wants to go out for a walk.

Advertising in hard times - GM's new commercial

During one of what must be the most difficult times in any business, GM made a surprising move. Last night I watched a commercial that basically said, "We're GM, we didn't do a good enough job, we're completely restructuring, here's how we're going to do it." It was a really good commercial. Against what many believe, in hard times, DON'T eliminate your advertising and marketing budget. In the case of GM, some very smart marketing person (or team) decided that the American people are famous for forgiving when they are told the truth. The ad didn't use a bunch of flowery language, didn't try to temper the message, just told the truth. The commercial clearly told viewers that the company could no longer do what it has been doing. It's our money that's bailing them out, don't we have the right to know? I don't know about the rest of you, but I can handle the truth and appreciate it. If GM would have come out and said, "We're better than before, we are still the greatest, we're top of our game, etc." I would have been disappointed. They're not. Instead, they are saying, "We screwed up and now here's what we're going to do to fix it."

By launching a straightforward campaign, the backlash of naysayers is likely to be less volatile. There will be those who complain that our bail out money is going to the advertisers instead of into the restructuring process, but I would have to disagree. When your company is doing something to improve itself, the only way your publics are going to know is if you advertise it. You cannot rely soley on public relations - even though that's an important part of the communication strategy. Too many businesses see advertising as an expendable expense. Instead, it should be considered an invaluable investment. You can make the greatest product in the world, but if the people don't know about it, it remains the greatest product in the world - sitting in a garage somewhere. It is hard to justify advertising expenditures when you have to lay people off. People are more important, right? The fact is, with a slow down of business, you need fewer people to complete the job. The smart companies are ramping up their advertising right now while media costs are lower. If I was an advertiser, I'd want to be the one who people hear about, talk about and buy from. The others are biding their time until things turn around. Sadly things may not for them.

As a cynical Gen Xr, I must say that I'm taking the wait and see attitude with GM. Maybe it's still a bunch of puffery. But when you tell me that you're decreasing the number of models available, that tells me that you're cutting fat. When you tell me that you're making an environmentally friendly car that qualifies for stimulus money, that tells me that you're jumping on the environmental bandwagon and we may all benefit. We'll see how things turn out. I'm currently a die-hard Honda fan and probably STILL won't buy a GM, but I know there are many who are staunch buy-American types who felt like the world was going to end when GM crashed. This ad campaign gives them hope. Good work GM. Now if you can make a car as reliable as my Honda, there may be some competition. We'll see.

Recognize newsworthy moments

Selling a home in a down market is hard. No kidding, right? Every Realtor and seller is looking for that magic bullet to get a buyer to take at least a second look at their home. Many people call these things gimmicks. But hey, gimmicks when done right can produce results. If you question that, look at McDonalds (two all beef patties contest in the 70s...) , Dr. Pepper (Free Dr. Pepper when...), Just about any car company willing to make your payments if you lose a job, Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction, all of these are gimmicks at one level or another. But a gimmick is only good when it captures attention.

Congratulations to Tina Haisman of Tina Haisman public relations for recognizing the news value of her client offering a million dollar coupon to sell his house. It will go to local media outlets as well as points north. The gimmick is doing exactly what it was meant to do... create buzz. Bloggers are already lambasting the idea on the Web site. I'll bet more than one forwarded it to someone else. Now I'm writing about it on my blog. That's how viral marketing works. Will it sell his house? Who knows. Maybe some reporter at The New York Times will pick it up.Maybe he'll end up on Letterman. It's the "maybe" part that's exciting. Maybe nothing will happen and he'll just get a bunch of publicity. Regardless, he created a buzz and with the help of a professional public relations counselor, that buzz is spreading.

Remember, it's not the gimmick that brings in the buyers. It's the buzz. Recognize the newsworthiness of a unique idea. Just be careful not to overpromote the ordinary. Journalists don't like that. Run it through the "Who cares" test and see if the response is, "Well, that's pretty cool." If the answer is, "Nobody cares" you may want to rethink the gimmick or the medium for communicating it. A run-of-the-mill idea won't get picked up by media. That's when you have to pay a bit more money to advertise.

I kind of hope he does sell the house with the million dollar coupon. It will accomplish many things.
1) Proves newspaper ads can work
2) Justifies the need and value of public relations (professionals)
3) Suggests coupons still work
4) Improves the sales figures for this year in Lee County
5) Proves that there are people willing to part with their money on a large scale

Here's the link in case you are interested.
http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009905310432

Thinking outside of the box

Today I've been presented with a very interesting marketing idea. Sponsorship. OK, I heard the collective eye roll out there. Sponsorship isn't a new idea, you say. I agree. But have you ever REALLY thought about sponsorship on one of those REALLY cool Indy cars? My client's son, Matthew Inge (the next big name in motor sports!) is on his way up to Indy racing. Apparently there are several levels, but unlike most sports, colleges don't give scholarships for racing. As a result, racers must finance their own events or rely on sponsors. I know, none of this is new yet. However, what I found fascinating is that race fans are loyal sponsor consumers. Why? Because they know the only way their favorite driver is out on the track is because of sponsors. I also was given a lesson in cross promoting, using sponsorships to build your own personal network, and actually profiting from a sponsorship that you are paying for- in real dollars.

For example, a grocery store may sponsor a driver, then as part of a value-added promotion (say Memorial Day weekend advertising) the ketchup, mustard and hotdog suppliers are given an opportunity for end cap advertising, posters, and you guessed it, a logo on the race car. The suppliers pay for this value of course and if the grocery store sells enough of these value packages, they will actually bring in more money than they paid for the sponsorship in the first place. It's a win -win-win situation.

Racecar sponsorship is not for everybody. It's best if you can commit some money to a long term relationship. As with any kind of advertising, consistent communication is the most effective means of driving (pun completely intended) your message home.

The audience delivered by a sponsored car is pretty impressive too. 70% of all race fans are wealthy middle-aged men. Hmm. There's some buying power there - I'm not sure why Tide sales skyrocketed after Ricky Rudd took the wheel behind the great big orange car, but apparently men bought a bunch of Tide after that happened. There is much more to come on this topic I think. In the meantime, anyone have a client looking for some pretty awesome exposure over the next few months? I've got a driver for you.