"Repyoutation" is not a typo. In fact, it probably is a better way to spell "reputation", because your business and you are inextricably intertwined.
The community has a hard time separating the owner of a store and the store itself.
If your business is known for being a clean friendly place, it is because YOU have made it that way.
If, on the other hand, it is known for being dirty, unfriendly and uncaring, it is also because of your efforts (or lack thereof).
You are the one that leads the troops, sets the stage and makes sure that all the nooks and crannies, all the details are attended to; all the while stressing that the business is an extension of your personality and your "repyoutation".
With the fall season upon you, now is the time to shine up your "repyoutation." Here are some tips.
1. If you are setting about to hire new people, hire friendly people, hire people that smile, hire people that want to serve. If an applicant can't look you in the eye when answering a question, do NOT hire that person.
2. If your flyers or website look like Mickey Mouse did them, hire a professional artist or web designer to make your center look good on paper, on your website and in any media you might use.
3. If you don't like going to your bathroom, then clean them, paint them and get rid of the graffiti. And oh yeah, get better toilet paper!
4. If your machines are running at less than 80 games per stop, get your mechanic to bring them up to standard as quickly and as economically as possible.
5. If the entrance to your building is in need of paint or patch, do it and then hang a big sign that says "Welcome". On the way out a sign should read "Thank You for visiting us. Please come again."
6.If your employees do not have a dress code or name badges, get them shirts, enforce a dress code and do it NOW!
So what do you think your "repYOUtation" in the community is?
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Acorns Into Chestnuts
There were 3,000,000 advertised jobs in June and according to the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, 4.7 people were available for each job opening.
Quick math tells me that is about 15 million unemployed people.
They are in our cities, towns and villages..
We frequently talk about adapting to change and rising from it.
After all, change is supposed to make us better, isn't it?
So what are we doing to help change these folks lives?
Or maybe change just one person's life or one family's lives.
Why not volunteer our centers as a job fair site...every other Monday night or so?
Let's encourage business people we know to schedule job notices in our centers.
We'll feel better because we are doing something positive and the community will look up to us.
And our businesses will become even more respected than it already is.
From little acorns mighty chestnut trees grow.
?
Quick math tells me that is about 15 million unemployed people.
They are in our cities, towns and villages..
We frequently talk about adapting to change and rising from it.
After all, change is supposed to make us better, isn't it?
So what are we doing to help change these folks lives?
Or maybe change just one person's life or one family's lives.
Why not volunteer our centers as a job fair site...every other Monday night or so?
Let's encourage business people we know to schedule job notices in our centers.
We'll feel better because we are doing something positive and the community will look up to us.
And our businesses will become even more respected than it already is.
From little acorns mighty chestnut trees grow.
?
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Action Required
"Action may not always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action." – Benjamin Disraeli
Maybe its time for us to take massive actions and get our business moving in a new direction; one that doesn't rely on "hope as a strategy."
The time is now. Isn't it?
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Eco Logic Time
My friend, Jon Perper - a proprietor of multi-bowling centers in the South Jersey area, took me to a ":green meeting" today involving the use of green products in Restaurants. I thought it was a neat idea and began asking some of the restaurateurs how valuable these 'green" products are to building their business.
Their responses were fast and furious.
First they all agreed that green products can be leveraged by green marketing and everybody, except for the few curmudgeons out there, would prefer to do business with a "green company" simply because it makes them feel good.
Secondly, just because they use green products doesn't mean they don't have to tell people about it. Its a unique benefit that one restaurant can have over another for attracting more environmentally conscious customers; usually better educated, more income and more frequent diners and take out people
Third, employees feel better about working at a place that respects the environment and has clear and enforceable policies about energy management, sanitation, food preparation, detergents and cleaning fluids With all of this good stuff, employees happily pass along this information to their customers who in turn feel good about themselves and invariably tell their friends about the "green restaurant" in the neighborhood"
Fourth, these restaurants also get the benefits of being the ones people will call upon for fund raising, company parties and events because these organizations want to ALSO demonstrate their social responsibility to their membership, employees or donors.
Gee, do you think bowling centers could get into this and make it work for them.
Please let me know what you think?
Their responses were fast and furious.
First they all agreed that green products can be leveraged by green marketing and everybody, except for the few curmudgeons out there, would prefer to do business with a "green company" simply because it makes them feel good.
Secondly, just because they use green products doesn't mean they don't have to tell people about it. Its a unique benefit that one restaurant can have over another for attracting more environmentally conscious customers; usually better educated, more income and more frequent diners and take out people
Third, employees feel better about working at a place that respects the environment and has clear and enforceable policies about energy management, sanitation, food preparation, detergents and cleaning fluids With all of this good stuff, employees happily pass along this information to their customers who in turn feel good about themselves and invariably tell their friends about the "green restaurant" in the neighborhood"
Fourth, these restaurants also get the benefits of being the ones people will call upon for fund raising, company parties and events because these organizations want to ALSO demonstrate their social responsibility to their membership, employees or donors.
Gee, do you think bowling centers could get into this and make it work for them.
Please let me know what you think?
Friday, July 1, 2011
Facebook Crashes Advertising Industry Party
While traditional advertising groups jostled for awards at a recent annual industry gathering in Cannes, the year's biggest star was a newcomer to the beaches: the social network Facebook.
The company has gone from nowhere a few years ago to become the biggest single seller of online display advertising in the United States with more than $2 billion in revenues this year, according to research firm eMarketer.
Online ad sales have boomed in recent years largely because they finely target consumers in a way that print media and TV cannot match. Google and Amazon initially pioneered the trend by analyzing Web surfing and internet searches to target customers' tastes.
Now Facebook has brought a new level of sophistication to the game: mining data from its social network about users' likes and dislikes as well as those of friends to better target ads.
The stakes are high: industry insiders and analysts say brands are willing to pay more for such 'social ads' than they would for traditional online ads since they see them as more effective.
Mykim Chikli from Performics, a division of Publicis, which helps big companies with online advertising placement and strategy said, "You can target people who like golf, cars, and watches and you can start to push ads to that profile of person."
In a demonstration of Facebook's current advertising power, Google recently launched a social network dubbed Google+ in its boldest attempt yet to crack the medium and tap the advertising dollars it brings.
The move toward social ads shows how the Internet is transforming the whole industry.
Major companies from Nestle to Ford are increasing the proportion of their ad spend on the Internet to the detriment of traditional press ads and big ad agencies are scrambling to evolve.
Facebook's influence is also spreading beyond its own site as more web pages allow people to use their log in details from Facebook to enter instead of a separate password.
Users can then share content and post messages within those sites as they would do on their social network, which in turn allows the website to access their profile and determine the user's likes and dislikes. Twitter has a similar system.
Beyond more sophisticated targeting, Facebook also serves to amplify traditional word of mouth on everything from new movies to the latest smartphone.
"If I have a good experience with a brand I'll tell a person offline -- I might tell my friend -- but if I do it on Facebook the average person is telling 130 people," said Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg. "We think that explains the very healthy growth of our advertising business."
The company has gone from nowhere a few years ago to become the biggest single seller of online display advertising in the United States with more than $2 billion in revenues this year, according to research firm eMarketer.
Online ad sales have boomed in recent years largely because they finely target consumers in a way that print media and TV cannot match. Google and Amazon initially pioneered the trend by analyzing Web surfing and internet searches to target customers' tastes.
Now Facebook has brought a new level of sophistication to the game: mining data from its social network about users' likes and dislikes as well as those of friends to better target ads.
The stakes are high: industry insiders and analysts say brands are willing to pay more for such 'social ads' than they would for traditional online ads since they see them as more effective.
Mykim Chikli from Performics, a division of Publicis, which helps big companies with online advertising placement and strategy said, "You can target people who like golf, cars, and watches and you can start to push ads to that profile of person."
In a demonstration of Facebook's current advertising power, Google recently launched a social network dubbed Google+ in its boldest attempt yet to crack the medium and tap the advertising dollars it brings.
The move toward social ads shows how the Internet is transforming the whole industry.
Major companies from Nestle to Ford are increasing the proportion of their ad spend on the Internet to the detriment of traditional press ads and big ad agencies are scrambling to evolve.
Facebook's influence is also spreading beyond its own site as more web pages allow people to use their log in details from Facebook to enter instead of a separate password.
Users can then share content and post messages within those sites as they would do on their social network, which in turn allows the website to access their profile and determine the user's likes and dislikes. Twitter has a similar system.
Beyond more sophisticated targeting, Facebook also serves to amplify traditional word of mouth on everything from new movies to the latest smartphone.
"If I have a good experience with a brand I'll tell a person offline -- I might tell my friend -- but if I do it on Facebook the average person is telling 130 people," said Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg. "We think that explains the very healthy growth of our advertising business."
Monday, June 27, 2011
Four Tips for Fall Leagues You can Use Right Now
For those of you getting ready to start thinking about fall leagues, here's a couple of things I hope you WILL think about.
1.Starter leagues or feeder leagues for NEW bowlers - short seasons tot hem are 4 to 8 weeks not 16 to 24 weeks.
2.Think about starting LTB programs in mid July that will end at the end of August just in time for an 8 week HAB program
3.Provide benefits to your traditional league bowlers (the 32+ weeks folks) that are greater than your short season league members and include not just discounted open play benefits, but special incentives for them to have their company parties, fund raisers, group outings at your center.
4. Go back to your Company party people and invite them in for a FREE party (bowling, shoes, chips and soft drinks) in July IF they book a paid party during the holiday season.
We have lots of tools to help you implement these programs; just call us and we'll show you how
516 359 4874.
1.Starter leagues or feeder leagues for NEW bowlers - short seasons tot hem are 4 to 8 weeks not 16 to 24 weeks.
2.Think about starting LTB programs in mid July that will end at the end of August just in time for an 8 week HAB program
3.Provide benefits to your traditional league bowlers (the 32+ weeks folks) that are greater than your short season league members and include not just discounted open play benefits, but special incentives for them to have their company parties, fund raisers, group outings at your center.
4. Go back to your Company party people and invite them in for a FREE party (bowling, shoes, chips and soft drinks) in July IF they book a paid party during the holiday season.
We have lots of tools to help you implement these programs; just call us and we'll show you how
516 359 4874.
Monday, June 20, 2011
New Marketing vs Old Marketing
Old marketing has been defined as the "movement of goods and services from producer to consumer that meets a customers needs or wants via the use of the 4P's (price, product, promotion and place)".
Throw that definition away. Well not all away; you still need a product; still need to price it, distribute it and promote it.
But the New marketing is a bit different. It has 7 steps.
These 7 steps require you to take action to get the customer to ultimately buy your product, return to buy it again and then positively refer your product or service to someone else.
1. Customers must get to KNOW your products via ads, articles, social media or referrals.
2. Customers must LIKE your product via your website, introduction/reception or newsletter.
3. Customers must TRUST your product, via a Free trial, Free report or a sales presentation.
4. Customers must TRY your product via a free offer, a through evaluation or by you nurturing them to take that step at "no risk."
5. Customers must BUY your product via your inside service /sales team, receiving a new customer kit or being able to give them multiple options yo pay for the product.
6 Customers must REPEAT their purchase of your product via bounce backs, cross selling, special offers, quarterly events, newsletters.
7. Customers must REFER your product to friends and family via results reports, introduction to other consumers who are endorsing your product or by creating special events for "new members" only.
Does your NEW marketing programs address these specific steps or do you have other steps that you work on?
Share it here, please or contact us @ fredkap@verizon.net to get you into the "New marketing mode" quickly, effortlessly and efficiently.
Good luck and good hunting.
Throw that definition away. Well not all away; you still need a product; still need to price it, distribute it and promote it.
But the New marketing is a bit different. It has 7 steps.
These 7 steps require you to take action to get the customer to ultimately buy your product, return to buy it again and then positively refer your product or service to someone else.
1. Customers must get to KNOW your products via ads, articles, social media or referrals.
2. Customers must LIKE your product via your website, introduction/reception or newsletter.
3. Customers must TRUST your product, via a Free trial, Free report or a sales presentation.
4. Customers must TRY your product via a free offer, a through evaluation or by you nurturing them to take that step at "no risk."
5. Customers must BUY your product via your inside service /sales team, receiving a new customer kit or being able to give them multiple options yo pay for the product.
6 Customers must REPEAT their purchase of your product via bounce backs, cross selling, special offers, quarterly events, newsletters.
7. Customers must REFER your product to friends and family via results reports, introduction to other consumers who are endorsing your product or by creating special events for "new members" only.
Does your NEW marketing programs address these specific steps or do you have other steps that you work on?
Share it here, please or contact us @ fredkap@verizon.net to get you into the "New marketing mode" quickly, effortlessly and efficiently.
Good luck and good hunting.
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