Archive View (June 2007)

Or not. Time will tell.  As you probably know Blockbuster has been spending millions of dollars on advertising and marketing trying to win back business they lost to Netflix. Their key differentiator has been that you can return your DVDs to a local store and get new DVDs the same day. Last night I heard blockbuster was closing 282 stores and using the money to focus on their online business. OK that makes sense but why spend all that time and money advertising the fact you have stores? Seems like someone at Blockbuster needs to take a step back and rethink their USP  and marketing strategy. At more...

As you know, I attended DMDays NY last week. I spent a good chunk of my career focused on direct marketing which is why it baffles me every time I go to a direct response conference and the 'expert' companies trying to sell their services don't practice good direct marketing.  It is the old story of the shoemaker's children.  My biggest pet peeve is when I receive an expired offer.  In the last few days I have received more than 5 mail pieces from exhibitors prompting me to stop by their booth.  Now you can blame the USPS but my guess is more...

Make no mistake: Insert a bunch of clichés in your marketing piece--and you can kiss your prospects goodbye. Walk the talk, more bang for your buck, put your money where your mouth is, clichés like these scream laziness on the writer’s part. Easier said than done to avoid falling back on overused expressions, right? Well of course it’s not easy. Whoever said writing was easy? But it’s creative brainwork that you must do if you want your marketing message to be read from start to finish. So what exactly makes a cliché harder to digest than sour milk? First of all, more...

It is always great to see that people believe we have done something unique with Trump University.  Lena West did a guest post on the lipsticking blog and she gets what Trump University is all about.   Before you launch a new product, create a new campaign, build a new business etc. , ask yourself is this something that has been done before or has this never been done.  If you can answer never you are probably on to something interesting and noteworthy.  Don't let anyone convince you that you have to stick with what has 'always' worked.  If you do, then more...

A newly found blogger friend of mine, Jack Spirko posted a challenge on his blog to his top 25 bloggers.  He wants to see which bloggers were monitoring his posts and their name across the web.   I was/am honored to be included with some of the bloggers he has listed in his top 25. This is an interesting challenge for me since this blog is still relatively new.  Jack's blog posting and my guest posting might help generate some buzz for this blog and Trump University.  I think there is a lesson in this challenge for any entrepreneur or marketer building a more...

Today I attended DMDays NY.  I think trade shows and industry conferences play an important role in any industry.  These events are perfect places for educational, product launch, and  networking opportunities.  I would recommend you attend any event before exhibiting.  If you can't attend the event then talk to others who have attended to make sure the audience/your target market is going to be in attendance.  If you do decide to market your business at an event please remember the following: Engage the people walking the floor If an attendee enters your booth try to be helpful, answer questions, and tell them what more...

If your like me and your mind is full of ideas and things to take care of then you should check out Jott.  Once you are registered you can call a toll free number from your cell phone and leave yourself a message.  The message is then transcribed and emailed to you.  I just opened an account and now my ideas will be waiting for me in my inbox. Now you can say good bye to all those scraps of paper you take notes on when the idea pops and you don't have a notebook.  Don't worry about forgetting the idea just more...

Why do I love a good tabloid headline? Ahhhh. Let me count the sleazy, tawdry ways. First of all: they rarely fail to get my attention. In fact, I can still remember this one while living and working in Washington, DC during the Bill Clinton cigar, beret-wearing scandal: Picture: Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky  Headline: The Big Old Pervert Told Me To Lie! When it comes to marketing, make no mistake: Headlines are the most important part of your ad--whether it’s email marketing, a banner ad or, a print piece. During my days as a tabloid writer, we had writers who focused solely with more...

During the last month I requested information online about two relatively high-ticket purchases. I provided my contact information and answered qualifying questions. And then neither company followed up to provide the information I asked for. Too bad, since one of the companies really had me interested. They promised me a free evaluation to help me decide whether their product was right for my needs. As a marketer, I find it very odd that these companies would waste a perfectly qualified lead. Each company took time and money to get me to their site. They qualified me and brought me through a process more...

Do you have clients or customers?  I had a meeting the other day during which we discussed the difference.   It is interesting to take a step back from time to time and think about your customers and how you refer to them.  You will probably care for and market to your customers differently based on what you call them.  Think about your lawyer or accountant.  Are you their customer or client?  If you sell retail products or services you probably have customers.  The word client implies that you have a relationship and that there is an ongoing business relationship.  While a more...

Google recently announced they acquired Feedburner.  I have been watching Feedburner's growth for about two years and I am a big fan of their services.  We use them at Trump University (see the link on the right).  In addition to all the metrics and services they can provide they created a new medium for marketers.  If you read RSS feeds you might see an ad from time to time and in many cases you will see a little note that says powered by Feedburner.  If you are marketing your business or if you have a blog you might want to check out their services.  more...

If you are an expert then you should create a Squidoo page.  These are basically one page websites that showcase your business or skills. Take a look at our Squidoo page and let us know what you think.  We are donating all profits generated from this page to the Squidoo charity fund.  We could use some extra traffic, feedback and votes to make the page better which will eventually help some worthy causes.   If you are marketing a business, product or service then you are an expert in that area.  If you are an entrepreneur or real estate investor then you more...

One of the biggest obstacles of writing a sales letter is perfectionism. Too many people feel they have to write flawless marketing copy in order to make the phone ring. They get frustrated because they can’t think of a clever enough headline, a slick enough opening, or they don’t feel inspired. This sort of thinking can stop you dead in your tracks and is more often than not, a waste of emotional energy. Because the truth of the matter is--some of the most effective sales letters on the planet are the ones that are not perfect and read like everyday speech more...