Over 100 Posts

Over 100 Posts on this blog.

We passed the 100 post mark a few weeks ago on this blog.

Lots of good marketing tips, insights and and controversy on this blog.

For example:

Post Alpha
My startling realization about blogs


Happy Ground Hog Day
Why Ground hog day can be more important to you than Christmas.


Blue Man Group
The powerful marketing lesson from the Blue Man Group


Barketing
Why you must avoid Barketing.


Night Light Marketing
The amazing marketing lesson from your night light.


Dog Days of Summer
Marketing Idea from the dog days of summer


Unfair - no fair
The importance of being unfair in your marketing



Marketing review from George Torok Marketing blog

Atmosphere - imagine that

Atmosphere – imagine that


Mix the following and what have you got?
Personal invitations, special event, horse drawn carriage, balloons, jazz quartet, a wild fiddler, several food and drink stations never running out, atmosphere, over 800 guests, local dignitaries and Mercedes luxury buses to shuttle the overflow from parking down the street.

Give up?

Surprise – it’s a new funeral home.

This was the VIP open house for Bay Gardens Funeral Home in Hamilton, Ontario.

You are forgiven if you are thinking, “Yeah right, - a funeral home? No way!”

From a marketer’s point of view – this grand opening was a fabulous example of how to launch a new product or business.

From an entrepreneur’s point of view – this bold new funeral home is an example of how to compete in a competitive and saturated market.

It’s important to note that a product launch does not make a successful product. Success starts with a smart business strategy. That’s difficult and soul searching. Once you’ve got that figured out the launch and operational issues are easy decisions. Just follow your strategy.

If you think it’s hard to get people to attend your open house or product launch just imagine how difficult it is to get people to go willingly to a funeral home. Considering that most funeral homes are pleased to get 100 guests at a grand opening – 800 guests is amazing. What’s more amazing and significant is that these 800 guests were potential clients and not suppliers or sycophants that often attend these events.

So why did so many people attend this event?

I suspect that it was because of the community work and powerful relationships built by Bay Gardens President, Jan Nichols over the past couple decades in the local funeral business and especially over the last three years since the launch of the first Bay Gardens Funeral Home in Burlington, Ontario.

Yes – the event was first class. All the fine details were exquisite.

However, nothing beats the power of strong relationships. I believe that the core strategy of Bay Gardens is relationships – relationships with the community and relationships with people.
That’s why Bay Gardens starts by building relationships with their staff. They already have over 600 applications for part time work and they haven’t advertised yet. That’s why they encourage community participation. That’s why they invested $500,000 in first class meeting rooms that are designated for use by local non-profit organizations. And it’s free – but only to non-profit organizations. This non-profit area is bold and unique.

That’s why Bay Gardens named the rooms after the local waterfalls and partnered with the local conservation authority. How many funeral homes name the rooms, Salon A and Salon B? A video of local waterfalls played in the screens during the VIP event and this video will continue to run. All 800 guests received a coupon courtesy of Bay Gardens for admittance and a tour at any one of several local conservation parks.

Why was this launch so successful?

Because there was a clear strategy, they were bold and they paid attention to lots of little details.

Why do I believe that they will not only succeed but overwhelm the competition?

Because there appears to be a clear strategy that is built on building strong relationships. If your business is suffering I suggest that you review the state of your relationships. Strong relationships beat branding, pricing and slow economies.

Bonus: This is a funeral home with atmosphere - imagine that. Walk in the front door and you face a two story indoor waterfall.

Below is a short video clip of the Wild Fiddler. The first thing you see is the two story waterfall. This hardly looks like a funeral home.






George Torok
Marketing Expert
Marketing Speaker
Canadian Business Speaker

How to Kill Your Restaurant Business Fast:: Four Eulogies

How to Kill Your Restaurant Business Fast - Four Eulogies
By George Torok

Why did the downtown restaurant close?

The downtown restaurant opened about a year earlier. I wasn't surprised that it closed. I was surprised that it stayed open so long. It was around the corner from my office. I walked past it every time I visited the restaurant next door - about once a week.

Have you ever watched a restaurant open and then watch it slowly starve to death? Have you ever wondered why they failed? Or did you know what they were doing wrong? Maybe you even offered constructive feedback to the staff and owners only to get a nasty look in return. We can see the self-destruction - while the owners seem to be oblivious.

Why is that? Because we see it from the perspective of a customer. The owners are engulfed in their emotional world of "It's mine - it must be beautiful". And maybe they keep telling themselves, "Hey, I spent a lot of money fixing up this place - people just have to see it my way - eventually".

What business are you in?

One of the biggest mistakes that restaurant owners make is to believe that they are in the food business. Big mistake! Grocery stores are in the food business. Restaurants are in the experience business. The experience at McDonalds is very different from that at Boston Pizza from TGI Fridays from Ruth's Chris Steak House. Yet they are all in the same business - just different segments of it.

Why do restaurants fail?

It's usually not the food. Here are three more restaurant failures that I witnessed recently in our neighborhood.

There was the Middle Eastern restaurant that offered Shwarma in a setting that looked more like a Burger King than a Middle Eastern décor. A big disconnect. And even though I lived only three blocks away I never received a flyer from them. They seemed reluctant to advertise.

Joe's Dinner seemed like a welcome change. They advertised in the paper, on lamp posts and sign boards. Lots of promotion. However, after three breakfast visits I swore never to return because the service was very slow and the servers unfriendly. The young girls were clearly untrained and they seemed more interested in chatting with their friends than serving customers. Often three of the staff chatted openly at the bar.

I looked forward to the opening of the new English pub. The décor was impressive. The owners clearly invested a lot of money. Lots of wood, a dance floor and it was small enough to be cozy. After one breakfast visit, one lunch and two dinner explorations they were written off my list. The service made the glaciers look fast. The food was mediocre and the serving staff either failed to recognize the inconvenience or made excuses when we pointed out the short comings.

So why did the downtown restaurant fail? I suspect that the restaurant owners followed a marketing strategy of hope. Hope is an admirable personal quality. It is a lousy marketing strategy.

I never visited this restaurant because it did not look inviting. I walked past at lunch time on a snowy day and the sidewalk wasn't cleaned. It looked uninviting.

It had floor-to-ceiling sized windows across the front - but it always looked dark inside - as if the lights weren't on. I was never sure about the cuisine although it hinted at Italian - which is my favorite. It never looked busy, and oftentimes looked closed. It lacked music that might have suggested excitement to invite folks in. I saw nothing that looked like a grand opening. I saw nothing special going on. Although my office was just around the corner, I never saw an announcement or invitation. I never saw anyone standing outside to welcome passers-by from the main street of town.

Imagine if they had done something just a little different to create excitement. Imagine if they had put balloons outside, hired dancers, held free draws, sponsored a charity event, knocked on doors, offered coupons, distributed menus, invited service clubs to meet... something.

Well, too bad that it closed; I was thinking that I might check it out one time. The food might have been superb. But restaurants are not in the food business. They are in the experience business. They failed to invite me in, which is the first part of the experience.

This downtown restaurant failed in early 2006 - long before the current turbulent times. You can imagine that the business owners probably blamed the market, the location or luck instead of their own lack of marketing. Those business lessons are even more important today. Many businesses will fail over the next few years and the owners will blame the "market" instead of being responsible for their own success or failure.

They had a good location and the economy was good yet they still failed. Location is not the panacea. Luck comes if you do enough of the right things. Business will fail in good and bad economies. Only the excuses will change.

Learn from the lessons of these failed restaurants. I recently spent over $100 on dinner for two at a fine dinning restaurant. The service was fabulous. We would go again. Be very clear on the experience you must deliver. If you run a restaraunt you are not in the food business.

©EA George Torok is co-author of the national bestseller, "Secrets of Power Marketing". To receive a free copy of "50 Power Marketing Ideas" and your free subscription to Power Marketing Tips visit http://www.PowerMarketing.ca

George Torok is a motivational business speaker who speaks to entrepreneurs, corporations and associations. http://www.business-speaker.biz/

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This article is published on Ezine Articles.

Marketing Blog Milestone: Post 200

Marketing Blog Milestone: Post 200

200 Posts on this blog!

Celebrate your milestones!

Your milestones are a reason to pat yourself on the back and it’s a reason to market.

This is Marketing Blog Post 200. That’s reason to celebrate – even if that means quietly sipping some fine brandy in my easy chair.

Two hundred of anything is worth celebrating. What milestones have you reached or are approaching? Do something to let folks know. Why? Because everyone loves a party and everyone wants to associate with winners.

If you were here since the beginning – thank you for your loyalty. And of course you read many insightful marketing ideas and tips.

If you joined us along the way then you might appreciate this list of high points of our marketing blog. Look back at the provocative and helpful marketing gems.


Post Alpha
January 1, 2006
A realization hit me. Blogs might be a good marketing thing. This was the start of my blogging. At last count I have at least five four active blogs. This from a guy who thought blogs were a waste of time.



Aspirin – relief from pain
April 13, 2006
We take aspirin or equivalent when it hurts. We seek a solution when the pain or threat of more pain is enough to move us to change. Have you noticed that the changes you make in your life are more often the result of pain than anything else?



Harry Houdini – the great brand
November 16, 2006
The first look at the power of branding – especially personal branding as demonstrated by Escape artist – Harry Houdini.



Travelodge Hotel Accuses you
January 28, 2007
One of several exposés of really bad customer service.



Over 100 Posts
February 23 2007
We failed to flag the 100th post so this post was the recognition of passing that milestone.



Flick Off: Powerful Viral Marketing
April 26, 2007
Out first embrace of controversial viral marketing by acknowledging the strengths of the controversial Flick Off campaign. This post led to posts about Mac’s convenience stores and their Bloody Zit and WTF Nun poster. Also had a few media interviews about this topic.



Richard Branson has Chahones
October 8, 2007
Our first nude photo on this blog. Might be the only one. It’s Richard Branson running through the surf covering his chahones. He's a great marketer. And yes he has billionare sized chahones.



George Torok

Power Marketing

Marketing Author and Expert

Marketing Speaker

Write Headlines that kick Butt

Write Headlines That Kick Butt

Write head-snapping profit-driving headlines in seconds. Stop wasting hours or even days agonizing over a good headline. Why settle for good when you can choose from 100 commanding headlines? And generate these headlines in a few heartbeats. All you do is answer four simple questions about your offering, hit go, and stretch for just a few seconds. And like magic you can select from 100 killer headlines that are guaranteed to out-draw your previous results by at least 30%. You know the importance of a powerful headline. If your headline doesn't grab your reader - you have lost that sale. Download this amazing program that will write headlines for you in 17 seconds or less… (read more)

You know how important a headline is.
You know how tough is can be to write one.
This software just blew me away with the results and ease of use.

I liked it so much I bought the resale rights.

Go ahead and check it out. I guarantee you’ll love it and more importantly improve your marketing results.

Go ahead – make your day.
Learn more about Headline Writer Pro.

Start writing killer headlines and kicking butt with your headlines.

George Torok
Power Marketing

Write Headlines That Kick Butt

Write head-snapping profit-driving headlines in seconds.

Stop wasting hours or even days agonizing over a good headline. Why settle for good when you can choose from 100 commanding headlines? And generate these headlines in a few heartbeats.

All you do is answer four simple questions about your offering, hit go, and stretch for just a few seconds. And like magic you can select from 100 killer headlines that are guaranteed to out-draw your previous results by at least 30%.

You know the importance of a powerful headline. If your headline doesn't grab your reader - you have lost that sale. Download this amazing program that will write headlines for you in 17 seconds or less… (read more)

You know how important a headline is.
You know how tough it can be to write them.
This software just blew me away with the results and ease of use.

I liked it so much I bought the resale rights.

Go ahead and check it out. I guarantee you’ll love it and more importantly improve your marketing results.

Go ahead – make your day.
Learn more about Headline Creator Pro.

Start kicking butt now.

George Torok
Power Marketing

Five Rules to Building Your Successful Marketing System

As a marketing expert I am often asked, “What is the most important element in a successful marketing program?”My answer is, “Follow a good marketing system.”

My research and experience includes interviews with over 450 business leaders, my consulting work, travel through 35 countries, market research and my experience from building my own business.

I have noticed that following a system is critical to success in life and any field of business – especially marketing.Too many people fail when they try to run their life, their business or their marketing by the seat of their pants. They make the mistake of believing that luck, talent and flitting about will pull them through.

What a mistake and what a shame. They fail quickly - especially in an unpredictable environment. Sometimes you get lucky but luck can and does change quickly. Counting on luck is a disastrous marketing strategy.

Follow good systems in every area of your business – especially your marketing.
When you are ready to witness the power of systems first hand – visit Las Vegas. It is a city that is built on systems. The hotels and casinos follow systems with a robotic obedience. First they designed powerful systems and then they follow them. Walk through the casinos and watch how they do things. They follow terrific systems. And they make money.

If you want to make money like the Las Vegas casinos apply these five rules in your marketing systems.

The fundamentals for a good system are the same in any field.Rules to a Successful (Marketing) System

1. A system is a process. It is the means to the end. It is not the goal. Be clear on the purpose of your system. That will keep you focused and motivated. When the system is not working – change it.

2. A system is built on a key principle or set of principles. These are fundamental truths that are transferrable across industries. The principle answers the question “Why?”

3. A system is a set of habits and routines. Almost like a series of logic statements; if this condition exists then do that. A system is not dependant on how you feel. That’s why you get consistency.

4. A system must be persistent and consistent. This is closely related to the previous point. Don’t expect 100% success. The system works because of the numbers. You win some and you lose some. The better that you apply your system the more you will win.

5. Measure your results. Systems are created imperfect. Record your results, analyze them and adjust your system to produce better results. That’s the way pilots fly planes. They set a course, see how they are doing and adjust the controls to stay on course.

Where do you want to improve your business? Create and follow a system to achieve your goals.
Follow these five rules and you will build good systems.
Build your marketing systems by indentifying important marketing principles. Then create and follow a process based on that principle. If the principle is sound then build the process and follow it religiously.

Remember that following an imperfect system is better than having no system. Building your business and marketing systems will lead you to more success.


© George Torok wrote the book on marketing systems – Secrets of Power Marketing. It is the first guide to personal marketing for the non-marketer. Get your free copy of “50 Power Marketing Ideas” at http://www.PowerMarketing.ca Arrange for a keynote speech, marketing briefing or media interview by calling 905-335-1997 or visiting
http://www.Torok.com


Five Rules to Building Your Successfull Marketing System

Sponsorship Marketing: Five Criteria For Success

Sponsorship is a friendly way of marketing. It’s friendlier than advertising.

When prospects are on the receiving end of your advertising they know that you are trying to sell them something. So naturally their guard goes up. They prepare to deflect your advertising assault. And they are looking for the fine print. They are searching for the lie in your claims. Mass market advertising can be the least effective form of marketing and it’s very expensive.

Sponsoring is perceived as a good thing. When you sponsor an event, community group or cause that your prospects like – they are more likely to like you. And they are more likely to trust those that they like. Trust makes it easier for prospects to buy from you. You don’t need to say a thing about yourself. By sponsoring you are indirectly saying that you support the cause.

For that reason be sure to include sponsorship in your marketing. But, choose your sponsorships strategically. The next questions are, “What should you sponsor?” and “How do you know if you are getting a good return on your sponsorship?”

What should you sponsor?Pick your cause – a charity, social issue or community group.Pick an event – a fundraiser, community event or gala.Pick a group – a business association, team or social group.From a marketing point of view the question is, will the people who participate reward you with enough referrals, business or good will? Some of this payback is long term. So you need to test your personal convictions. Do you support this cause enough to loose money on it in the short term?For example: I sponsored my daughter’s soccer team. Did I expect a full return on my investment? No – not really. It was a small amount of money, much less than the cost of a traditional advertisement. I needed less than one sale to pay back. I was happy to support my daughter and proud to appear as a sponsor. Any business that I got would have been a bonus.Sometimes you sponsor just for the exposure to the right group. For years I was a wine sponsor at the Chamber of Commerce President’s Gala – a black tie affair. I did not expect direct business from it – just recognition and profile. It was a relatively small amount of money, only a few hundred dollars. Yet I received almost as much profile as the event major sponsors who invested thousands of dollars. It also provided a good conversation opener because folks thanked me for the wine.
Test your sponsorship opportunities against these five criteria:

A negative rating for any one of these criteria could be enough to disqualify this particular sponsorship.


1. Relative cost to exposureIs the cost relatively small compared to other venues of reaching this group? Are you getting more exposure or better targeted exposure from the sponsorship compared to other marketing avenues?

Related to this point, is how well can you leverage the sponsorship? Can you get a list of names? Can you market to them before or after the event? Will it help you to list this sponsorship in your other marketing materials?


2. Audience targeted to your best prospectsThe best prospects for my marketing training and consulting are business owners of mid-size companies. So, I would rather sponsor a forum that reaches 100 business owners versus 1,000 front line customer service reps or 10,000 students. Be clear on who your sponsorship message will reach.


3. Your relative exposure among the sponsors
How many sponsors will there be? How well will you stand out and be noticed among the other sponsors? Being one sponsor among three is much better then being one among 20 sponsors. Don’t get lost in the mob.

4. Do the other sponsors lift your profile?Will you be in the company of other sponsors who make you look good? If you are a small business you might want to be seen in the company of large well known corporations that elevate your influence. You might choose to be associated with fellow sponsors Microsoft, Chase Manhattan Bank, and Coke over Unknown Consultants, Everyday Franchise and Local Taxi Cab.

Even the cause you sponsor can help or hurt your image. We judge you by the company you keep. Whose company are you keeping?

5. Do you support the cause?
If you don’t believe in the program, group or their battle cry – then stay away from it. If you fake your support you will be uncovered and it will haunt you and hurt you.

Sponsorship can be an important element in your marketing activities. Sponsorship can provide you with a profitable return if you have clear expectations of the results and your motivation. Use the five criteria described above to help you make smarter choices in your sponsorship marketing.


© George Torok is co-author of the national bestseller, "Secrets of Power Marketing". To receive your free copy of "50 Power Marketing Ideas" and your free subscription to Power Marketing Tips visit www.PowerMarketing.ca
George Torok is a motivational business speaker who speaks to entrepreneurs, corporations and associations. www.business-speaker.biz/

For more business insights, comments and tips visit the marketing blog at http://georgetorok.blogspot.com/

Sponsorship Marketing: Five Criteria For Success

Blog - Questions and Answers

Why should you have a blog?

It is another marketing channel for you. It can be efficient and effective. It is easy to use and it can be free. See below on how to create your blog.

What is a blog?

It is a special type of website. It has the software that allows you to write and post information quickly without knowing anything about HTML programming. Why is that important? It helps you build and test your blog easily and quickly.

Where did it come from?

The word "blog" is derived from "web log". Web logs originated as an easy way for people to write personal logs, rants and beliefs on the web. Now blogs are gaining acceptance as a business tool. Don't let the origin fool you. Remember - personal computers started as games. And just because millions of teenagers have cell phones doesn't make the cell phone insignificant as a business tool.

What can a blog do for you?

Think of a blog as a communications tool. Now think about whom you might want to communicate with. Perhaps you want to reach customers, clients, investors, media, staff, and/or the market place. With diverse groups like these it's best to create a blog specific to each group and message that you want to send. I have five blogs and each serves a different purpose.

The nature of blogs?

The blogosphere is rapidly changing. Technorati, a leading blog search engine, reports that over 75,000 blogs are created every day. As more blogs are hatched enterprising bloggers will become more creative.

Most blogs contain short articles - called posts. Short means anywhere from 50 to 500 words. There are no rules but people who read blogs prefer the short posts.
You want them to visit your blog often. You encourage that by posting short articles and posting often. How often? It is up to you. The best blogs post a couple times a week. I post two to three times a week.

Blog posts tend to be informal. That can help you because most websites are rather formal and cold. If you are wondering how your website feels read the post on my blog titled "About Us". Informal writing allows you to establish a better rapport with your readers. They might feel a bond with you. Be warned - informal doesn't mean sloppy nor crass. Just let a little of who you are show through. And it is easier to do this with a series of 100 word posts than a 2,000 report.

What might you write on your blog?

First decide on the overall purpose of your blog. It is okay to change later. Feedback might help you refocus. Product and service tips for your customers. Company, product and industry news. News about your customers. Customer feedback. Questions and answers - like this article. Reviews, excerpts or comments from books or other articles. Your insights and perspective on trends, challenges and achievements. Interviews - see samples at http://businessinmotion.blogspot.com/

Why use a blog instead of a regular website?

You should still maintain your regular website. But you know how long it takes to update your website and how much it costs you. With a blog you can update it instantly - at no or little cost. It will take a little time to write. A short post on your website might look lost but that is the de rigor of blogs. Once you start you will be surprised at the things that stimulate new posting ideas. I recommend that you write several postings at one sitting then forward that to an editor or proofreader for correction and posting.

Why do search engines like blogs?

The regular search engines also find and list blogs. Google my name and notice the blog listings. In addition, there is a separate group of directories and search engines just for blogs. Each time you post to your blog it automatically updates the blog directory for your latest post. Plus you can "ping" a couple dozen of the major blog directories from pingomatic.com

Google likes websites with relevant content. That's why you target your key message.
Google likes sites with many relevant pages. Every post to your blog automatically becomes a new webpage. So as you post you are building a rapidly growing website.
Google likes sites that are updated often. That's why you post at least once or twice a week.

And here is another bonus. By linking to your main website from your blog you also boost the search status of your website. If Google likes your blog it will like the relevant sites that you link to.

Where do you start?

There are many providers of blogs - some free and some for a fee. Start with a free one to test and learn. I suggest you try Blogger.com. It is free, easy to use and considered the largest. Bonus, Google owns it so you know your blog will get noticed by Google. If after you try it you decide you don't want the blog you can easily delete it.

I suggest that you view some other blogs before you start to get some ideas. Search for blogs from your industry, competitors and suppliers. Also look at blogs from entirely different industries - that's where you will find fresh ideas.

The mistake?

The mistake is to start a blog, use it incorrectly and write off blogs. Like every tool understand the purpose, learn the fundamentals and develop skills. At some point you might need to upgrade your skills, delegate the task or hire an expert.

What should you do now?

Maybe a blog isn't right for you. And maybe it is. Can you afford not to check it out?



George Torok Keynote Marketing Speaker Co-author of Secrets of Power Marketing Get your free copy of "50 Power Marketing Ideas" Power Marketing on FaceBook Marketing Zoo on Twitter

The Million-Dollar Homepage

Just when you thought that all the million-dollar ideas were taken, Milliondollarhomepage.com makes a million dollars for a 21-year old student.

Visit the site to learn more. You might read it, then shake your head and wonder, “why didn’t I think of that?”

This idea is brilliant in it’s uniqueness, simplicity, low risk and huge return. Copycats are imitating but with unimpressive results so far. Being first is risky but most often gives the best return. And like the Pet Rock some things only work once.

The concept – create a one-page site and sell small ads by the pixel. Minimum order is 100 pixels – i.e. 10x10 pixels. That is small. Each ad is linked to the advertisers website. With a total of one million pixels on the page – the potential is one million US dollars in sales. A bodacious goal. But very little to lose.

This is also a rags-to-riches story. Alex Tew, the 21-year old student who conceived and implemented this idea started it because he needed money for tuition. Looks like he will have a lot of money left over for other things. I wonder how many parents of college kids will send this article to their little darlings.

Congratulations Alex Tew! http://www.milliondollarhomepage.com/
Congrats for thinking big and taking the chance.
And thanks for inspiring others to do the same.

George Torok
(Shaking my head and thinking, “Damn, why didn’t I think of that?”)
http://www.torok.com/