There’s a lot of marketing power in riding on the coattails of popular events. Having a restaurant in the vicinity of the stadium or theater and promoting your business alongside that of the big event can help both interests. Avoid trademark issues and the risks, however. The Super Bowl Trademark Super Bowl Sunday offers terrific […]
How to Increase Retail Traffic During the Summer During the summer, it can be difficult for retail stores to keep a steady stream of traffic. Memorial Day, July 4th and Labor Day all offer the potential for sales or other events but promotions can become stale through the years. Many retail stores that cater to […]
One of our clients is rolling out a program this week to track where people saw or heard their advertising. It reminded me of how difficult it is to get accurate information back from consumers. Even if the ad is striking, it may be misremembered by customers. A number of years ago, our agency was […]
There’s been a controversy in Michigan over the legality of the font size on a ballot initiative. The state law requires that the headline or summary description for petitions must be in 14 point boldface. Opponents of the proposed law asserted that the font choice of the ballot proposal did not conform to the legal […]
During the recent APRO Conference in Memphis (Association of Progressive Rental Organizations) I attended a session about the importance of color in advertising. The speaker was Denise Turner of Color Turners. All of the factors that contribute to the design of a promotional piece are important, of course—but be sure you don’t neglect the color […]
Recently, Dan Cathy of Chick-fil-A took a stand against gay marriage in an interview with the Baptist Press. I should point out there is no indication that Chick-fil-A – the business – actually participated in any employment discrimination or denied service to any customers. The comments were just the feelings of the fast food chain’s […]
How much do you know about your customers? Studies show that what we think we know is unreliable for decision-making because we are too often influenced by what we want to be true or what would be true for us. Business success rests on a little, easy-to-get information. Managing a good database of customer information […]
Once again I wonder, “What were they thinking?” The recent flap over uniforms made-in-China for American Olympic athletes is the reason. This is another public relations controversy that could have been avoided with a little common sense. Who on the USA Olympic Committee thought this was a good idea in the first place? After all, this […]
This is the season to order your promotional calendars to give away in November, December and January. To have them available in time, the bulk of the orders will need to be in by late August. Why Give Away Promotional Calendars? Even in 2013, personalized calendars remain one of the most popular promotional products purchased […]
One of my clients wondered how to be certain that his direct mail was being delivered. It’s a good question. Every business or non-profit should ask that question if they are sending much direct mail. From time-to-time you hear stories about some rogue postal carrier dropping all his “junk mail” in a dumpster instead of delivering […]
A recent advertising insert in the Dallas Morning News caught my attention, not for what it said, but for what was not included. The large full color insert for Conn’s , a retail appliance and furniture store with multiple locations, did not include an address for a local store. In fact, there was not even […]
“Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning.” –Thomas Alva Edison Marketing and advertising inevitably require some lead time but too often businesses don’t plan ahead. For marketing dollars to be well spent some preparation is required before implementation. It is important to plan far enough ahead to establish objectives, determine processes for […]