Re: [AlpacaTalk] Marketing Stories

I can see already that I need to talk more about how my animals or
breedings to my boys will be good for their farms and breeding
programs! And talk more about personal support.

On Mar 5, 2009, at 10:16 AM, Ellie Winslow wrote:

> (Posted with permission of listowner and this is my next Sat blog
> installement)
>
> Let me tell you a story about a man named Blair who was hired to do
> a promotional TV ad for a fishing lodge. The lodge had a great
> reputation but they now wanted to target husbands and wives who
> were taking a vacation together.
>
> So Blair looked at all the tape and footage he had to work with and
> found one that stood out. It showed a husband proudly holding up a
> nice fish he had caught, his wife smiling and patting him on the
> tummy then giving him a hug and a kiss. The shot really said it
> all, brimming over with good feelings.
>
> Blair used that piece as the centerpiece of the promotion, choosing
> voice-over, pacing and music around the centerpiece. It was all
> ready to go. Then he showed it to the CEO of the fishing lodge.
>
> The CEO hated it! He refused to show it. He said lots of bad
> things about it. "Where are the trophy fish? That's what sets us
> apart from the competition!!! Where is the picture of my lodge?"
> The CEO wanted to brag about his business. Blair wanted to show
> the good feelings a husband and wife could have at the lodge.
> Well, it turns out the ad was scheduled to run too soon to do any
> changes. The CEO was furious and sick with frustration.
>
> The ad ran. The phones lit up. The CEO's wife was overwhelmed
> because she didn't know how to handle all the calls for vacations.
> Suddenly, they loved the tape and to this day they still use it and
> run it at their trade show booth.
>
> It worked because it showed people having a good time. People will
> spend money where they feel good.
>
> Who are you like, Blair or the CEO? Are your website pictures of
> animals standing alone out in a field? Or are you showing people
> and little kids interacting on your farm with your animals and
> products—having fun? Are you bragging about your business and your
> "stuff" or are you telling people how they will feel good by doing
> business with you?
>
> Let me tell you another story. A woman who lived in Austin, TX was
> traveling in Oregon, and happened to stop into a Nordstrom's
> department store while she was there. She went to the makeup
> counter and the clerk there befriended her, found out what she
> liked, got her name and address.
>
> When the woman got home there was a nice card from the clerk
> thanking her for stopping in. A few days later a Fed Ex package
> arrived filled with samples of the products that the clerk said the
> woman might like. And she did. And this woman practically beamed
> for a week because she felt very, very special. And she ordered
> products long distance from that clerk for the rest of her life.
> Why not, the clerk was a friend now and it felt good doing business
> with her friend.
>
> What do you do to make your customers feel good? There's a
> qualitative difference between reading the above and saying to
> yourself, "Yes, good idea," or going to the effort of sitting down
> with paper and pen to think creatively about how you can make it
> fun at your farm. One takes no effort, the other requires you to
> really think about and create fun for your customers. If you do
> the latter, you'll find customers are practically throwing money at
> you—yes, even in a bad economy!
>
> The above stories were borrowed from a biography of PT Barnum,
> "There's A Customer Born Every Minute" by Joe Vitale.
>
> Ellie
>
> http://beyondthesidewalk.com
> Marketing Workshops, Books, blog/free newsletter & consulting:
> Growing Your Rural Business: From the Inside Out
> Marketing Farm Products: and How to Thrive Beyond the Sidewalk
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

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