This is a video assignment in our Viral Marketing Class for my Internet Marketing Degree.

Week 1: We were assigned a fictitious company. I chose GIft Baskets for All.
We created a Discovery Brief on that business in week 1.

Week 2: We the had to develop a Creative Concept Brief, describing the outreach concept of our Viral Marketing Plan.

The goal of the marketing plan was to reach new market segments and increase sales/revenues throughout the year, trying to level the peaks and valleys of the prime selling season that evolved mostly around the holidays and purchases for Women (birthdays, Mother’s Day, Easter, etc).

Week 3: Where we had to create a movie as the outreach product of the Marketing Plan.  The goal of the movie was to speak to the new market segments we wanted to reach.

I decided to target two verticle segments: College Students and Men – neither of whom receive many gift baskets, but both of which would benefit from them.

The emotional hook I tried for was that men were suffering the lack of gift baskets, and knew that certain favorite items would be easy to put in along side other premium items that would surprise them. The gift baskets for college students evolved around “care baskets” – students cannot survive on pizza and cafeteria food entirely – they need fruit and – well yes, even candy!

I admit, I am NOT a movie producer, but I did my best -with the help of my friends (whose names I promised to keep to myself) to get the point I needed to make across to the audience. LOL

Are you an Entrepreneur?

• If you own your own small business, you are.
• If you are a Realtor, you are.
• If  you are into MLM, you are.
• If you are tossing my newspaper in my front yard, you are.
• In fact, if you do anything that does not provide you a weekly paycheck, then you – my friend – are an Entrepreneur.

Entrepreneurs all have some things in common:

• We are all focused on a passion.
• We are determined.
• “We do not fear failure” is our mantra.
• We are used to being told “no”, and we know that is the first step to a “real” conversation.
• We all can agree (maybe not in public) that being an Entrepreneur can be a loney and nerve wracking experience, at many points along the way.

Yet, this is truly the best time to be an Entrepreneur EVER. Why?  Simple!  In the past we had to seek each other out and try to find common ground. That was never easy.  After all, we generally eat, sleep and live our businesses and, until recently, networking with others was usually a hit or miss proposition.

But, thanks to Social Media, we no longer have to spend so much of our very valuable time trying to ferret out those like-minded individuals.  And THAT, my entrepreneurial friend, is what Social Media is REALLY all about.

If you are one of the many who are feeling “confused” about Social Media – then you are one of the many who have bought into the hype!

There are a lot of people espousing a lot of ways for you to use Social Media as a sales tool.  To an extent, I agree it’s a good marketing tool. However, let’s face it, just because you “friend” Joe Boxlight on Facebook, doesn’t mean that Joe is going to (a) friend you back; (b)  interact with you; (c) or buy your stuff.  If you have ever walked into a Networking Group, then you should think of that feeling and apply it to Social Media.  You aren’t there to SELL your wares – you are there to create a network of people who know and trust you!  You have to share your passions, your thoughts, your daily life stuff and get REAL to them.  Only THEN will you “sell” something….and if you are really on your game, you will realize you are not “selling” people on your “stuff”, you are selling “YOU”, and they – in turn – are BUYING from the brand that is “YOU”.  If they don’t know your brand, they aren’t going to buy!  No matter HOW MANY times you list what you have…and even if they need it!

So turn off that selling machine, and turn off the pressure valve in your brain, and come to the REAL party!  Social Media is not the “magic pill”. The sooner you admit this, the faster you can do the “right” thing and then get the REAL DEAL:  REFERRALS! It’s about networking with like-minded individuals that you need to get to know, and (more so) that need to get to know YOU.  It’s just easier on the web because:

(a) it’s no cost or low cost;

(b) you don’t have to pay a fee and drive somewhere,

(c)  you can use a simple search to find people with common interests or ties to the commnity, and

(d) you can make them aware of who YOU are and what your needs are – it’s always about KNOWING YOU first, then your needs.  People love to help other people ( most of them, anyway).  Helping others first,  is the best first way.  Asking for help, instead of selling, is the best second way.  Thanking those who do business with you in a real way, is the ultimate!

Have a great second week of this new year, and new decade!

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Is your website an electronic billboard or does it tell a story to your visitors, provide information they are looking for and use an archetype designed to attract your specific buying audience?

Too many websites are simply “points of sale”.  Unfortuately, that puts you in a position of requiring a visitor who is ready to buy.  What if they are not at that point in their decision yet?  What if they are simply shopping for goods or services and investigating when they land on your site.  Do you give them information they are looking for in order to get closer to the buying decision – or do you simply send visitors to the “Sales Dept” to let ’sales’ have a crack at the money in their pockets?

If you are not providing information and telling a story, you are not connecting with your buyers, and you are also not providing information to your visitors to give them the sense that you are a good choice for their purchase.

You need to develop a brand story.  If you are a reseller for someone else, then your brand story should be about YOURSELF, and how YOU are going to personally be of service.

If you sell only one thing, you can give them all the information they need on that one thing and then make it easy – at every point along the way – to let them purchase.

If you sell many things, make sure they have a clear path to the information they seek FIRST.  If you do, they will make a buying decision and you will have them in your lap at that point in the decision process.  You will be a trusted advisor, and they will have confidence to make the purchase.

It takes work, but if you don’t have a brand story, you need to get busy building one!