Red Giraffe

Enthusiasm Is Worth Its Weight In Gold

Colin Parker — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 17:20:37 +0000

Last weekend, I attended a local trade show with a client of ours. On Friday evening and all day Saturday things were pretty much, well, your typical trade show. However, at 12:30 on Sunday afternoon the energy level in the building suddenly raised by about 200 percent. Why? The puck dropped at the Olympic gold medal game between Canada and the US and Prospera Place had the game on the big screens.

For the next 2 hours, people that previously looked like they were about to keel over from either exhaustion or boredom became animated. Smiling. Cheering. Finding it very easy to make small talk and initiate conversation with the show attendees. Curious, isn’t it?

Why do companies invest thousands of dollars in product, materials and time to stand on concrete floors for 3 days with hundreds of other vendors? (It sure isn’t for the perks of drinking trade show coffee.) They do it because trade shows provide a prime opportunity to make a face-to-face connection with hundreds, sometimes thousands, of prospects with whom you may not have otherwise met. What impression do you want to give them about your company?

You can have the best looking booth, the most eye catching signage, and a prime location on the trade show floor… but if you look like you’d rather be anywhere else but working in that booth, your impression will fall flat. I was amazed at the dramatic difference in attitude of the various vendors when the hockey game was on. If they had showed that kind of life and personality for the other 15 or so hours of the trade show, people may have left with a very different impression about their products.

Not all of the vendors fell into this category. I was quite impressed at the energy and passion that the client I went with showed to each and every person. And there were a few others like him. But for the most part, many did indeed appear to be wishing they were elsewhere. And it showed.

Don’t waste your hard-earned marketing budget on a trade show unless you plan to demonstrate gold-medal enthusiasm to those who come. Let your passion, not your exhaustion, shine through and just like Team Canada – you’ll have victory.

You Can’t Fake It!

Colin Parker — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 14:21:35 +0000

Anyone can say anything they want about their business… Insight into someone’s true character will be revealed in subtle ways. A client recently came to me with an issue. The solution included my suggesting that they purchase a certain software product that would enable them to accomplish some of their goals. The software was not very expensive – under a hundred dollars – and was something that could have multiple uses for projects within their business.

The client informed me that they had a friend who was a “computer guy”. This guy was able to get him any commercially available software – for free. He seemed proud of the fact that over the last couple of years he has not had to pay for any of his software products. I left the meeting feeling a bit disappointed in this insight into his character. What did he think telling that story would say to me about him and his business? The bottom line is that now that I know this, I wouldn’t choose to do business with his company. If he was willing to take a shortcut for something as little as $100 – what would he be willing to do if the stakes were higher? Integrity. You can’t fake it!

Surprise is An Effective Marketing Tool

Colin Parker — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:19:28 +0000

When you can take what people are expecting and add a twist or a surprise you can great something remarkable. Remarkable gets remembered, remarkable gets talked about, but more important remarkable sets you apart from the rest of the market.

The video above comes from the Oprah Show’s 24th season kickoff party, Harpo staff and more than 20,000 people pulled off a massive surprise for an unsuspecting Oprah. The entire crowd performed a choreographed piece to the Black Eyed Peas’ “I Gotta Feeling,” and Oprah was not only shocked, she was thrilled! Award-winning director Michael Gracey says the interaction between the Black Eyed Peas and the crowd is what made the flash mob so extraordinary. ”There’s something really special when you take an audience and instead of just being passive and watching, you invite them to participate,” he says. “That’s why it was so magical for both parties. Two groups of people came together to create something that neither of them could have done alone.”

Check out the flash mob that took over Chicago’s Magnificent Mile.

LinkedIn For Business

Colin Parker — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 04:34:33 +0000

Move over Rover, as a sales person I have a new best friend called LinkedIn. Most small business owners don’t realize the power of this tool and how it can change the way you sell. So I have created a list of 4 ways you can use LinkedIn for your
business:
1. Use the advanced search option to find the names of prospects and businesses to whom you can sell services. For example, if you sell bookkeeping services look up the presidents of small businesses in your area and then prospect.
2. For any prospects you find check to see who in your network might be connected to that person and then ask for an introduction. A personal introduction to a prospect is always better than making a cold call.
3. Become a member of the Groups that your customers, prospects and other sales people are members. For starters, you will find a lot of people in just one place. Secondly, you can raise your visibility and reputation by helping people in Discussions. A third benefit is that you will be able to contact other Group members directly, even when you are not connected personally.
4. Look at the Network Updates on a regular basis. For example when someone changes positions or companies. You might also notice if
a competitor has linked with one of your prospects. This might give you some early warning that the customer might be shopping around.These are a few of the compelling reasons to consider signing up today for a LinkedIn account. And… it is free.

Donuts, Donuts, Donuts

Colin Parker — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 14:53:29 +0000

People often get stuck in the mindset that “I am a bookkeeper (insert any business name here) and there is no way to differentiate my business from other bookeepers because we all do the same thing.” Wrong, wrong, wrong. You are just not trying.

Last week in “Lessons I Learned from Tim” I wrote about the local donut shop that makes me feel like family. In doing so, they have stood out from other donut stores. Voodoo Donuts in Portland Oregon has taken the donut shop in a whole new direction. Voodoo Donuts’ signature item is a voodoo-doll shaped donut filled with raspberry jelly (blood). It comes with a pretzel stick stuck in the chest. The owners say that customers love to poke the pretzel into the donut over and over again. The creativity of Voodoo Donuts doesn’t stop there. They offer a Maple Bacon Breakfast Bar; which is a maple glazed donut complete with crispy bacon on top. Their menu is filled with a wide variety of donuts that you simply can not get from your average donut shop. They offer toppings such as crushed Oreo cookies, Captain Crunch cereal, and multi-coloured marshmallows. Oh, and they even act as a wedding chapel, just in case you wanted to pick up some vegan donuts and renew your vows.

The owners have been rewarded for the effort with two locations that often have long lines and coverage from media outlets such as Food Network, Today Show and USA Today. So what does this have to do with selling? A lot! As it is much easier to sell something when it is different and unique. So my question for you is, “What can you do with your business to make it different?”

Lessons from Tim

Colin Parker — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:22:39 +0000

I love the Tim Horton’s near our home. We have been regular customers since we moved to the neighborhood. Now some of you might think, “There HAS to be places that serve better coffee than Tim Horton’s.” Well, yes, there are. In my drive to the office I pass six other places I can easily stop and purchase coffee (two of them are also Tim Horton’s). All six of these other places actually have shorter waiting lines, because our Tim Horton’s is very busy. So why do I stop at the busiest donut store around when I could stop at six others with shorter lines and possibly better coffee? One word. “Home.” It feels like home. Shortly after we moved here, the lady in the drive thru window asked me my name and introduced herself. I’d never had that happen in a donut store before, and now every time I stop by, Jill greets me by name. It doesn’t matter if I’m on a roll and stop nearly every day, or if a couple of weeks go by without a visit. Jill knows a lot of people and calls them all by name.

This personal service is not unique to Jill at this store. I was telling my wife that once on a weekend I had ordered and realized that I had left my wallet in my other jacket. The worker told me to go ahead and just take my order and pay the next time I was in. On weekends when the kids are with us, sometimes a couple of free “Timbits” will be added to the order or special pink sprinkles are added to a little girl’s donut (because pink is her favourite colour.)

Somehow this donut shop has created a sense of family. So when another donut shop opened nearby I didn’t even want to try it. And when I’m out of the area and go to other donut shops I compare it to the one where “my family” is.

It is the small things that customers and prospects remember, the fact you ask about their kids by name; you remember they were training for the marathon and ask how it went; or you add a little something extra to the order.

What Would It Look Like If It Was Invented Today?

Colin Parker — Sat, 30 May 2009 23:45:37 +0000

What would email look like if it were invented today? That was the question that Lars and Jens Rasmussen asked themselves and the answer they came up with is Google Wave. I love this question; and I think it is exactly the right question that everyone should be asking about their current products.

Google Wave is a new tool for communication and collaboration on the web and will be available later this year. Watch the demo video below to see this product in action. What I find the most interesting is the approach that was taken to design it. Let me ask you, “What would your products or services look like if you invented them today?” I’d like to encourage you to get rid of the decades and burden of old thinking and view the old in a new light. Would your stuff be exactly the same? I hope not.

Buy a Truck Get A Goat

Colin Parker — Sat, 30 May 2009 21:26:47 +0000

In today’s economic climate, Peter Wilkins of Mitsubishi Motors New Zealand figured every little bit helps. And in the spirit of bizarre gift-giving, he launched a marketing plan designed to increase sales of the Mitsubishi Triton — buy a Triton, get a goat. Absolutely free! From the Brisbane Courier-Mail:

Goats improved farm productivity by defending against weeds, were cheaper than toxic sprays, and there was no risk of goat flu affecting the tourism industry, [Wilkins] told NZPA.

“We are aware that three years of drought has severely depleted sheep and beef populations, so what better time to float the goat?”

If the purchaser already had enough goats, Mitsubishi would supply a no-goat package including a five-year/100,000 km extended warranty, five free warrant of fitness inspections, 5000 km road user charges, five years of roadside assistance and $500 of genuine or approved Triton accessories.

The free-goat offer extends through July and applies only to Triton purchases. I wonder if the goat is also covered under the warranty?

The #1 Conversion Killer in Your Copy (And How to Beat It)

Colin Parker — Sat, 30 May 2009 20:03:45 +0000

Great article by Sonia Simone on what makes people almost buy? What makes them get most of the way there, then drop out of your shopping cart at the last second? What makes them stare at your landing page, wanting what you have to offer, and yet, ultimately, close the page and move on to something else?

The Importance of a Filter

Colin Parker — Fri, 29 May 2009 06:06:02 +0000

I look forward to the moment in my morning when I’ve had my shower and I sit down for breakfast with my first cup of morning coffee. That moment, when I take my first sip, is the point in my day when I realize anew that the whole day is stretched out before me with limitless possibilities.

This morning my first sip tasted funny. I pressed on to the next one, and after a few more I realized that there were things floating in my cup. Coffee grounds. My coffee filter failed to do it’s job. It had sagged over on one side letting a couple of teaspoons full of grounds creep down into the pot.

Filters are important. They separate things you don’t want from things you do. As important as my coffee filter is to making my morning cup that much more pleasurable, in business there is a filter that trumps all other filters. The filter through which all marketing decisions are made.

When you have a clear vision of what you are, and what you are NOT; and you are able to articulate it clearly, you have a filter through which you always should pass any marketing strategy, product development efforts or other decisions.

“Should we go to production with a model that is pink?” “Should we attend a trade show in Las Vegas this year?” “Should we spend time/money adding features to our software product?”

Pass your decisions through your filter; but make sure your filter is solid, accurate and true to what your company actually is. Do the upfront analysis to determine accurate positioning, otherwise you will get to the bottom of the cup and realize your filter was faulty. If you need help with market positioning, contact us today. We provide the unique perspective you need.