#94 - "Snowmageddon, Postcard Marketing, a BIG marketing lesson from Soundview, AND an interview with Marc Accetta". | "Help! My Business Sucks!" Irreverent Marketing Videos for Small Business: Ideas and Tips for Marketing Your Small Business

#94 – “Snowmageddon, Postcard Marketing, a BIG marketing lesson from Soundview, AND an interview with Marc Accetta”.

February 10, 2010

Episode #94 – “Doesn’t expecting the unexpected make the unexpected expected?…”

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Websites and Resources for your benefit:

Try Roboform (Store & Easily Access your Website Logins)

RentOMeter (Discover rental prices in your surrounding area)

SoundView (Soundview Executive Book Summaries)

Other Useful Resources:

Preview the GotBiz WebTV Network (The NEW Place for Unconventional Business Education in 2010)

NiftyClicks (Discover the very latest web tools and resources)

Consult with Andrew (Via telephone, to help your business grow faster)

Buy This Week’s T-Shirt (from National Media Services)

I was almost stuck in the massive snowstorm dubbed ‘Snowmageddon’ that hit the east coast of the USA last week. In my time in New York City I noticed the demise of one of the most well known landmarks in the middle of Times Square – can you guess what it is?

Postcard marketing is a valuable tool for advertising and promoting a product or service in almost any business. Our question relates to the subject of tracking the results from a postcard marketing campaign. Any ideas? See if you agree with my recommendations.

The nifty web resource in this episode will help you discover whether you’re paying a fair price for your rental property, regardless of where you live. You can enter what you’re currently paying and the system will show you comparisons with your neighbors, so you can see if you’re getting a good deal, or perhaps being royally ripped off!

I saw a great ad from Soundview Executive Book Summaries recently. It presented two columns: on the left hand side was the ‘problem’ and on the right, the ‘solution’. This format for advertising is as old as dirt, but it’s proven to be effective. I’ll show you WHY it’s such a good formula to follow, and I’ll also show you how to adapt it for your small business.

Let me know your opinion about the topics covered in the show this week – leave your comment below, it’s really easy to do.

Enjoy the show!

Regards,

Having trouble viewing this week’s episode? Try the QuickTime version.

Feedback / Questions: Send me a message or question about your business, you just need a webcam connected to your computer. It’s fast, easy, and free. Note: You might be famous! In submitting a video, you agree to the possibility of having your video shown in a future episode of the show. Click on the ‘reply’ button below…

21 Responses

Tony says:
February 10th, 2010 at 5:19 am

The TrySoundView.com site isn’t up just yet – I am sure it will be soon though!

Another great show – thanks Andrew.

Tony
Aluminum Fence says:
February 10th, 2010 at 5:58 am

Great show… I am an avid follower since your first video over a year ago. Keep up the good work.
Nik Simov says:
February 10th, 2010 at 6:21 am

Dear Andy,

So glad you asked!

Yes, at the time investment experts did think Mr. Branson was out of his mind for trading the world’s 4th biggest record company for the 25th biggest airline.

And yes, quite often truth is stranger than fiction as Sir Richard was neither psychic nor insane.

In a nutshell, Virgin Airlines was being attacked by British Airlines (hope you’re not paying taxes in the UK anymore) and he decided to sell the record company to raise funding and protect the jobs of his people and the airline.

To put things in perspective, this happened some time before Napster and the mp3 explosion so Richard had no way of knowing what a blessing in disguise the “loss” of Virgin Records was.

Takeaway: If something we interpret as disastrous happens, we’ll be doing ourselves a huge favor if we focus on finding the blessing in disguise.

Easier said than done, of course, but I’ve found in my personal experience that just like with any other art form, practice makes perfect.

PS Here’s the link, if you’d like to watch Richard’s interview at TED where he talks about other crazy stuff as well (the record company bit starts at 2:35): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DudfBIxw6do
Glynn Wright says:
February 10th, 2010 at 6:30 am

Great show Andrew, good interview, I’ll be checking out the websites. Now, let’s get to the tee shirt………you told me you didn’t drink coffee, sooooooo what does that say…hummm.
Dr. Todd P. Sullivan says:
February 10th, 2010 at 7:00 am

I have used Soundview’s program for the past few months and I highly recommned it. Its a great service. Snowmageddon just got worse this morning, 10 more inches and 45 mph winds in the Washington, DC area.

Dr. Todd P. Sullivan
Alex Kei says:
February 10th, 2010 at 7:22 am

Hi Andrew,

Please put your link of soundview in the description or the show and please verify if TrySoundView.com is the corrrect link because I can’t open it.

Thanks.
Donna Personeus says:
February 10th, 2010 at 7:32 am

Love your T-shirt “Instant Human: Just add coffee”
Love it more than your present guest. He is not that interesting, sorry.
Dennis Lindsley says:
February 10th, 2010 at 7:44 am

Andrew, The concept of edutainment is interesting but Mark Accetta himself, unfortunately, is not very. For a guy who’s excited about the edutainment concept he failed to do two things that would have made him believable and engaging: number one he never cracked a smile, number two, although he tried, he never once looked at the camera. The contrast between your presence and his presence could not have been more stark. I think a short rehearsal could have remedied the situation. What you think?
Iyabo Asani, The Entrepreneur Success Coach says:
February 10th, 2010 at 7:45 am

Andrew, great show today. I am excited about what Marc is doing. How refreshing!

I do believe that a lot of our issues revolve around the fact that we do not “play.” How many adults think of play that often? Yet it is necessary to our state of mind and our happiness.

Marc is showing us how to play, how to have fun while living life.

This is all very exciting.

Thanks for a great show as usual.

Iyabo
Refine Electrical & Instrumentation-Melton says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:26 am

Andrew,
Thanks for the update email.
Original show with never-before-seen marketing content.
How do I find my target market for post card mail out?
How do I find my target market at all?

Comment:
Ok interview with Mark.

Please use more video clips and picture during the interview.

What’s the next action?

Melton
Hal Hoadley says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:44 am

Hey Andrew,
Boy, was I surprised when this show started. I clicked the play button then got up to get something from a shelf and I heard you say my name. I had to hit stop , then replay it again. There is something very motivating when you hear your name mentioned by someone you admire and knowing that thousands of other people heard you mention me by name too.
Ok, enough bloviating…
I will definitely check out Marc Accettas’ websites. He seems to be what every marketing company needs. Also, while on the subject of postcards, I have been using them exclusively in getting my “Local Internet Marketing To Small Business” off to a good start. Here is a company I use that designs, prints and mails my postcards very inexpensively. So, you may want to check them out here: http://www.click2mail.com
Thanks again for mentioning me on your TV show. I have lots of marketing ideas, especially because I have followed Dan Kennedy for years. Anytime you need help from your gallery, I’d be more than happy to help.
Regards,
Hal
Ben says:
February 10th, 2010 at 9:59 am

Thanks for answering my question Andrew! It’s a great solution…I just need to figure out a way now to INSPIRE people to visit the website after they get the postcard – I’m think maybe if the card includes a recipe/workout, there is a link to a video of me preparing the recipe/doing the workout.

Also, here’s the incredibly important question: how do I claim my awesome newsletter prize?

Thanks again,
Ben
Terry says:
February 10th, 2010 at 10:29 am

Hey Andrew:

Another great show!

Thanks for the RentoMeter.com tip.

I think the next big thing in rentals is the bed and breakfast concept WITHOUT someone making you breakfast.

In the past it was hard to manage a daily or weekly rental, that is till now. http://HomeAway.com is a company I saw watching the superbowl where they will manage the hassle of short term renting your home.

Check it out, and let me know what you think.

Thanks!
Tom says:
February 10th, 2010 at 1:05 pm

Great show and the interview reminds me of a suggestion I made to you awhile back to create different characters (of the SNL type) for your show. I know you could pull it off and it would add value to your show.
locky says:
February 10th, 2010 at 1:57 pm

The link is: http://www.fastbookreviews.com – sorry about that.

Regards

Andrew
Kevin Dubrosky says:
February 10th, 2010 at 2:27 pm

Andrew, I love your fresh perspective. What do you think marketers are doing wrong with their “launches” these days?

What would you do differently?

I tried leaving a video but it crashed firefox three times in a row, so I gave up.
locky says:
February 11th, 2010 at 8:58 am

Nik,
Thanks for your comments about Virgin music, that was really interesting.

Donna & Dennis,
Thank you for your feedback, I appreciate it.

Melton,
I’m not sure what you mean by your question – is it WHO is your target market, or WHERE are they to be found? Most business owners know the former because it’s the people who buy from them, the latter is a process of understanding the marketplace. What publications do they subscribe to for example? If there’s a popular magazine for your niche you can often rent the mailing list of their subscribers.

Hal,
Thanks for the tip about Click2Mail.com

Ben,
Just wanted you to know that your question was edited a little because the audio dropped out in places, in case you were wondering. For the prize, please email support@helpmybusiness.com

Tom,
I think you’re giving me more credit than I deserve. Sounds like an interesting concept but I’m not much of an actor!

Kevin,
Generally, I don’t subscribe to the ‘launch’ style of marketing unless its part of an ongoing relationship with customers. Many marketers make a big splash with a launch and then you don’t hear from them for 4 or 5 months until they’re ready to launch something else. That’s not a business, it’s an opportunity, and customers rightly resent it. I prefer to offer consistent content along with regular resources that are useful. There’s no single ‘must have’ product that you can’t live without, but you wouldn’t think so to listen to some of the flavor of the month launches. So again, a launch has its place if its part of an ongoing relationship with customers, but I don’t agree with marketers surfacing every few months JUST to pitch something, make money, then disapear until the next time. And I also dont agree with the overly hyped launches. It’s tiresome and unnecessary.

Regards

Andrew
Sean says:
February 11th, 2010 at 2:44 pm

Will your show ever be able to be viewed on a Blackberry?
locky says:
February 11th, 2010 at 10:15 pm

Hi Sean,

The technology for running WebTV shows on cellphones isn’t perfected, but we’ve got it in mind.

If you know of an inexpensive solution that works, please let me know and I’ll be happy to look at that.

Regards

Andrew
Mark Richardson says:
February 12th, 2010 at 11:46 am

Great info and great interview. I found the site through your webinar from vertical response.
I’ll be a regular visitor.
Mark C. Loukedis says:
February 15th, 2010 at 9:54 pm

Great Show Andrew!!!
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