Lost Opportunities

I walked into a large used furniture store recently looking for an antique bureau. I had never heard of this store and just happened to drive by. A man in his 50's, who appeared to be the owner, was doing work on his computer and briefly glanced up. I looked around the store for a few minutes and left shaking my head. There was nobody else in the store and part of the reason was obvious. The service was terrible and the store was boring and dull. There wasn't any music playing and the walls were bare.

This man lost a multitude of business opportunities by being complacent. A passionate business owner with powerful marketing skills would run this business different. Here is what a masterful marketer, like your self, would do:

• Get out of your seat and greet customers with warm smiles.
• Offer coffee and a doughnut, pastry, Glacier Ice Cream, etc.
• Try to strike up conversations with the intention of discovering commonalities.
  
• Ask customers if they are looking for anything specific. If they aren't, keep an eye on them and tell them to feel free to ask any questions.
• Offer to call a competitor for items you do not stock. A network of used furniture stores that cooperate can be very effective. New furniture stores are also competition to used furniture stores. I wound up buying a new bureau.
• Offer a $20 off your next visit coupon in exchange for the customers email information. Keep a database of items customers are looking for and send out periodic offers through email newsletters.
• Have music and wall decorations in the store. You should also sell everything displayed on the walls.
  
• Give your customers coupons for a 10%-20% premium when they sell use furniture to the store.
  
• Market heavily at and around the local university that has over 10,000 students move in and out each year. (None of the over ten used furniture stores in Boulder do this)
• Do fusion marketing with other used item businesses like clothing stores, bicycle stores, and home furnishing stores. You can network, offer coupons, and put small displays in co-operating businesses.
• Establish relationships with local landlords and property management companies.
• Put furniture displays outside your store on sunny days.
• When your customers are completely satisfied with everything you offer, hand out special offer coupons to give their friends. You can even make it more beneficial for customers. Offer $100 in free merchandise for each $500 in business that the coupons generate.

You have control of your destiny. Ignorance is not an excuse. Struggling entrepreneurs can either wallow in their misery or do something about it. There is an endless source of free marketing information on the web or you can hire a professional marketing consultant to help you regain your dream. This is your moment. Create a profitable business that is the perfect reflection of you.

Information Overload

Our brains are suffering from information overload. It is like a 24/7 carnival of electronic stimulation. Don’t let the valuable information pass you by. Start an electronic file system that keeps track of all of your most important information and ideas.

I currently keep electronic files on marketing ideas, persuasion techniques, valuable websites, quotes, negotiating tips, business ideas, and more. In six months' time, I have referenced over 3,000 pieces of information from close to 20 years of files and books. This information will be invaluable once it is indexed in a more accessible manner. I encourage you to start doing the same.

“The object of education isn't knowledge, it’s action” Thomas Kempis

Don’t read this post if you are easily offended

The potential for persuasion can be lost at the drop of a word. Mention a controversial issue and many people become so offended that they can’t focus on the overall message, whatever it may be. This is very common in politics. It drives people to vote based on a candidate’s stand on single issues like abortion, taxation, or the death penalty.

I have an opinion that is so controversial in my community, I will not talk about it in my ice cream stores. I will share it with you at the end of the post because I fear that if I tell you now, my overall message may be lost.

Building a rapport with your customers is important, yet there are some things you shouldn’t discuss. Religion is one of them. For instance, if you were a salesperson, this joke would probably be a bad idea. But for our purposes, it’s worth the laugh.

Warning: If anyone is offended by the following, feel free to substitute Rabbi, Imam, Father, Tom Cruise, or whoever for the role of priest.

One beautiful sunny day, a priest and his church’s web designer, John, go out for a round of golf for the very first time.

John tees up on the first hole and takes a huge swing. Whiff.

“%%@ damn it, I missed,” screams John.

The priest looks at the web designer and says, “I am a man of the cloth, please don’t talk that way.”

John apologizes profusely.

John slowly approaches the ball, takes another huge swing, and misses.

“%%@ damn it,” he screams.

The priest lowers his head and says, “You cannot take the lord’s name in vain. If you say that one more time, there will be a problem.”

The web designer shakes his head and approaches the ball for the third time. He takes a slow, deliberate swing and misses again. He holds his breath and starts to turn red. Finally, he can’t take it anymore and screams.

“%%@ damn it.”

The priest immediately drops to his knees and starts to pray. Dark clouds roll in. The previously sunny sky turns grey. Out of nowhere, a lightning bolt flashes from the sky and turns the priest to ashes.

From the sky comes a booming voice.

“%%@ damn it, I missed.”

I have a bad habit of sometimes talking without thinking. I also have a good habit of analyzing impartially what I have said, what I read, and life in general. I woke up this morning thinking of a blog I read last night. My Internet friend, Duane, wrote a very entertaining and informative blog about hype.

What I remembered most about the blog was Duane’s opinion that sushi is dangerous. I looked back over the blog and found some great points. The problem in my frail human mind was that Duane made what I felt was an incorrect statement that I could not get out of my head. It clouded my memory of the post.

For the record, health codes in the U.S require sushi to be frozen at extremely low temperatures to destroy harmful organisms. I respect all opinions and do not get offended by different points of view. The problem is, my brain’s initial reaction isn’t always so fair.

You must consider how customers react to the statements we make about controversial issues. I do not consider sushi controversial. Abortion, politics, and global warming can be.

Now I will share with you the viewpoint that I cannot utter within 100 yards of any of my stores.

I do not believe that mankind caused global warming. I do believe in almost all of the steps being taken to reduce global warming, but I feel that the planet has more immediate problems, namely those resulting from the overpopulation that has accompanied the massive economic growth in previously poor countries like China and India.

People actually get angry with me when I state my global warming opinion. “How can you believe that?” they ask.

You cannot change a person’s beliefs. You can offer good arguments and back them up with statistics and facts. The fact remains that people need to change their beliefs by themselves. All of us in marketing are in the persuasion business. Taylor your messages to your prospect’s needs and desires. Try to avoid putting our primitive human minds in the negative mode.

How to Market to 10,000 Stoned College Students

Yesterday, a huge cloud formed over the University of Colorado. It did not come from a fire or from smog. It was a huge cloud of marijuana smoke created by 10,000 people lighting up in unison. Yesterday was 4/20.

For all the pot smokers of the world, 4/20 is the ultimate party holiday. At 4:20 on April 20th, celebrants ritually smoke marijuana. The students at the University of Colorado in Boulder take it to another level. They congregate in a field at the center of campus to smoke in unison.

The Crowd at 4:19 pm on 4/20/ 2009

The smoke cloud at 4:21 pm

Personally, I am against smoking anything. I have never even tried a cigarette, something that is probably due to watching two of my grandparents die from lung cancer. But the fact remains that each year on this day there are thousands of stoned students, hungry as a horde of locusts. and my ice cream shop just happens to be in the path of the swarm.

In the past, we never used to market to the participants of this holiday. Our totals in the early years were about 30% higher then a normal day. That changed three years ago. We now actively market to the post event zombies. This year, our sales were 500% higher than a normal day. That is not a typo. In the last 2 years, we have done five times what we normally do in a day.

Glacier Ice Cream on the Hill’s top secret stoner holiday plan

• Make hundreds of fresh baked waffle cones starting at 12:00 pm. People can smell them within a four block area.
  
• Pass out thousands of 4:20 special deal coupons all over campus starting the week before the event.
  
• Staff three times the normal amount of people to handle the crowds.
  
• Mention our 4/20 special to every customer.
  
• Pray for great weather.
  
• Play Reggae Music all day long.

The line outside Glacier at 4:30 on 4/20/2009

Dealing with over 1,000 stoned students in one day is quite an experience. Orders have to be repeated multiple times. People forget what they order, forget to pay, and often leave belongings. I never marketed for the 4/20 gathering in the past because I did not want to condone smoking pot. Yet, I have come to realize that I am not in the judgment business. If people want to smoke pot, who am I to deny them their ice cream cravings? 

Give and You Shall Receive

Everyone in business receives requests for donations, especially in this economic climate. But I challenge you to look at requests for donations in a different way.

What if you could actually help organizations and build your business at the same time? It’d be the classic win-win situation. Well, it is possible. It is a regular part of our business at Glacier Homemade Ice Cream & Gelato.

Not only do we have the best ice cream in the world, but we are a local business that gives to our community. We are asked to donate to various organizations an average of five times a week. Obviously, we cannot accommodate all of the requests. We have, however, instituted a system that is workable and fair.

Here are our donation guidelines:

• We only donate to children’s organizations and University of Colorado groups (one of our stores is next to the university).
• We donate (4) $5 gift cards for silent auctions.
• We donate free kid’s coupons for school non-profit events.
• All requests have to go through our website. No phone calls, letters, or dropped-off information.
• We will sometimes donate ice cream to events at the beginning of the school year and at the start of the spring season.
• We refuse all donations that don’t fit our guidelines with a personal and polite explanation.
• We donate free coloring books to schools. The coloring books feature our Glacier Bear doing activities at different glaciers around the world.

It is important to give back to the community that supports you. Not only will people appreciate it, but they will stay loyal to your business as long as you also continue to provide quality products.

There can be business benefits to your charitable donations as well. Below are the business benefits for the Glacier Homemade Ice Cream & Gelato donation program:

• Donations are a tax deduction.
• People form an emotional attachment with your company when they see you giving to the community.
• The organizations we donate to usually put Glacier’s name in print and mention us in advertisements. We benefit from free advertising.
• The coloring books we donate create awareness of the Glacier brand.
• When donation recipients pass out coupons for us, it becomes a great low cost marketing strategy.
• Children come in with their families to redeem their free ice cream coupon.
• Our coupons and gift cards expose new customers to our stores and our brand.
• The busy company president does not have to deal with constant phone calls and mailed letters. Our policies are clear and our employees know our guidelines and communicate them to donation solicitors.

A clear and generous donation program is a fantastic way to distinguish your company from your competition. Implement one, and you will discover the immense benefits of combining charitable donations with creative marketing.