Dunn Bros Coffee launches new promotion

Specialty coffee chain Dunn Bros. has launched a unique giving program to raise funds for community organizations.

The Dunn Bros Coffee Community Giving Program allows community or nonprofit organizations to apply for special Dunn Bros. “Roastmaster Rewards” cards for their employees.

When anyone uses the Community Giving Roastmaster Rewards card, Dunn Bros. Coffee shops will make a donation equal to 10% of the net sales proceeds to the registered organization that distributed the card.

Since each Dunn Bros Coffee location is independently owned, the participating store owners will be donating the money generated by sales of an organization's members at each location.

“Not only does this reflect a significant financial investment by Dunn Bros. Coffee store owners in the many communities they serve," says Chris Eilers, president of Dunn Bros. Coffee. "It is a way to build partnerships with local and national organizations and offer a superior product that gives much more than just a caffeine boost.”

Larson note: The use of a rewards program has long been an excellent way to create and keep customer following. And in this plan is great! Not only do you have a rewards program for people who have causes but, in marketing the donation it becomes a taxable write off not just a plain discount. Someone had their heads on in the creation of this plan.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
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P.S. Need your brochure translated. Pick your language and if needed pick your country. Yes we do translation work for your sales and marketing pieces.


*major source Bryan Yurcan

E-Mail direct marketing ad attack

Yesterday newsletters, today e-mail advertisements.

If you have ever dabbled in direct mail marketing attacks you can easily apply the same basic principles to an e-mail marketing attack but the time-line results will be that much shorter and less expensive. Then of course e-mail is fast. Production time is minimal, receiving time is instant and response to your message will either be in 24 hours or less or it’s not coming.

All these things are important in a down-turned economy. By being able to shorten your sales cycle but in instantaneous of e-mail it can keep you in the game for one more round. You might be able to take advantage of a developing trend or story, sending out a blast in hours or the event allowing you to take full advantage of it. You also have the ability to test market copy, headlines, links, pull, etc.

Finally people can get a hold of you easier and faster right where they are. They don’t have to stop and change channels to get a hold of you, NO picking up the phone, no logging online (they are already there) they hit your link or down load your coupons or other stuff and away they go.

Larson note: Quick, easy, fast with instant (24 hour or less results) Is it worth a try? Those are the upsides, the downside is that some people call even legitimate email making SPAM and might “black ball” you no matter how careful you are. For me, I would take a shot at it but then it fits my business and I own my own software.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
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P.S. Need your brochure translated. Pick your language and if needed pick your country. Yes we do translation work for your sales and marketing pieces.

Business % notes for Tuesday

47% of buyers are saying incoming orders were down in
Source: www.purchasingdata.com

65% of banks have tightened lending standards this year
Source: Federal Reserve

1.3% Forecasted 1st quarter US GDP growth
Source: National Association of Business Economics

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
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P.S. To get on my Newzine List email me.

E-Mail Newsletters work, ask me.

Every month without fail I send out my monthly newsletter. No this is not some advertising piece put together to promote me but rather an ongoing roll out on selling and marketing. The current effort(s) have been an ongoing roll out of how to sell over the phone. Anyone who wanted to take down this information could easily(s) do it themselves. Yet each month almost without fail I get 3 to 6 requests that transforms into at least 1 new account with this soft sell method of promotion.

If your out there looking to market yourself and not spend big time bucks, keep your name in the marketplace you should be strongly looking at using e-mail marketing.

E-mail marketing can help you save money and be cost effective. Yet you need to plan and make sure have an implantation strategy. What is your objective? What is your message? What is your strategy?

Here are a few simple ideas you can follow to be successful:

The federal CAN-SPAM act requires that you give e-mail recipients an opt-out option and prohibits misleading routing information. In addition it prohibits misleading subject’s lines. Check www.ftc.gov or type CAN-SPAM in the search box for information
It is the subject line of your e-mail that will really determine whether your message gets read or not. If you use words “free”, “sale”, or “offer” and I can almost guarantee it is gong right into the spam or delete box.
More than half of readers view emails with the images turned off, myself included. Unless you have a strong text message with your images 50% of the people who even open your email up will not get your message
Your E-newsletter should be a minimum 85% education. This way people will keep coming back and opening your email and seek you out as an “expert”.
If 8% or your recipients even open your mail you are doing very good.
Do-it-yourself providers such as Constant contact and iContact offer templates and list management support that make it a little easier to put your email marketing campaign together.

Email mail marketing is fast and easy and can be very rewarding. The hardest thing might really be your list creation.

Larson note: I have been an active E-mailer for some 7 years now, I personally use e-Campaign so I don’t have to pay out the monthly usage fees of Constant Contact, iContact or some other services. My list that I send to, is over 700, and is growing AND I get at least 1 customer every time I send it out, or once a month. My key has been consistency and no real advertising, just good solid material that I have stuffed into my blond brain over the last 30 some odd years of selling.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
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P.S. To get on my Newzine List email me.

What You Can Do to Survive the Credit Crunch!

Review the financials and balance sheets of key suppliers
Expand purchasing/finance risk assessment projects
Intensify supplier audits
Tighten supplier-rating programs
Tighten credit policies with suppliers
Reevaluate in-house inventory and future stock needs
Reopen new-supplier development programs
Reopen/rewrite supply agreements for 2009
Initiate new materials-cost reduction efforts
Review and revise manufacturing and buying forecasts

Larson note: Take the initiative and be proactive. Meet with each of your top 10 customers and get the inside scoop on what is really happening. Go and take your banker out to lunch on your dime. Go over your projected needs for the next 6 months and reduce or shift inventory accordingly and/or set up just-in-time arrangements with suppliers so you don’t have all your money sitting on the shelf locked up in inventory, and for that matter do you know what your inventory turn over ratio is? Good time to figure that out. You can go out and shop you needs as well. You can bet there are Lots of hungry companies willing to swing a good deal in your direction, perhaps? The ball is in the buyers court, use it for what its worth

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. To get on my Newzine List email me.

How Obama's Administration will Impact the Consumer Goods Industry

Over the last couple of months we have seen a contraction of IT spending (both in 2008 spending and anticipated expenditures in 2009). This has caused us to lower our spending projections for 2009 from an average growth of about 5.8 percent down to 4 percent. This is a result both of tightened credit markets and reduced consumer confidence.

Manufacturers fund IT spending through a combination of credit and cash from operations. So, if credit is tougher to come by and operating performance is depressed, spending will drop off. The staggering drop in reported year-on-year automotive sales in October is certainly a sign of consumer confidence as we move into 2009. The same goes for the most recent domestic jobs report that showed a net loss of more than 200,000 in the same period.

We expect the new president to favor legislation to protect consumers, incentives to reduce job losses to low-cost manufacturing regions, investments in infrastructure/public works and a continuation -- of recent defense spending levels. The administration's view on free trade is a little less clear. During the primaries, Obama aggressively criticized NAFTA, yet softened his stance subsequently and has now named Rahm Emanuel as his chief-of-staff -- a man who played a key role in the passage of NAFTA during the Clinton administration.

The consumer goods industry is understandably anxious about the transition in Washington, D.C., but much of the anxiety is the result, not of the election, but of the public's increasing focus on climate change and the environment. At the same time, global competition, energy prices and the financial crisis are squeezing the industry's profits. With public opinion generally come regulations and other government-related initiatives that attempt to change behavior -- these would include taxes or tax breaks, import or export fees, and so on. And those efforts are likely to cost manufacturers more money at a time when costs are a major source of frustration -- and a primary motivation for outsourcing/off-shoring. With a new administration comes the inevitable turnover of political appointees and staff that could bring dramatic changes to regulatory agencies, including the EPA. But most manufacturers also recognize there are opportunities in this new political environment.

We have also seen some quite dramatic consumer shifts to value and private-label brands, and broad devaluing of individual stock prices during recent months. We do expect to see some modifications to IT spending levels in 2009, with a greater focus on cost-reducing along with trade promotion optimization, consumer-centricity efforts and a continued investment in supply chain modernization. Other areas of investments will also be in the areas of global trade management, governance/risk/compliance, product lifecycle management and collaborative applications to support the complexity of extended organizations and encourage faster, more efficient innovation and better decision-making.

Both presidential candidates talked extensively during the campaign about the need to stem the exodus of U.S. jobs. We do expect to see new incentives from an Obama administration in an attempt to stem the loss of domestic jobs, although we do believe fundamentally in the free-market system that looks at total-cost in global sourcing decisions. President-elect Obama's campaign platform included ending tax breaks for firms that move jobs outside the United States, and award tax credits to those that increase the ratio of U.S. to non-U.S. workers. But, jobs are sent overseas for many reasons, and we see tax breaks as having only a limited affect on overall off-shoring.

The fact is consumer goods manufacturers are moving operations to other countries because of workforce costs and/or customer growth outside of the United States. This is a balancing act in the product lifecycle and the supply chain -- where should companies locate research & development (R&D), design, manufacturing or service, and what are the implications for the supply chain? Perhaps a better approach is to look at each of these elements separately and encourage the right ones to be located in the United States. Given Obama's interest in promoting science and technology, this could be a good reason to argue R&D and design remain in the United States, without penalizing these companies for moving other elements outside if the decision makes sense given other factors such as cost and sustainability.

Larson note: Sitting back letting Obama do his “thing” Basically I like NAFTA or the overall concept of it but need to put in some “fairness teeth, into it. If we look at Mexico, we need higher wagers south of the boarder as well as Mexican Truckers given the right to drive more than 100 miles across the boarder.

As stated a month ago in this column I like the Obama proposal of giving tax credits to companies keeping jobs in America rather than outsourcing them. Heck I would rather see a change in immigration policy to let these companies transfer these potential workers into the USA with full rights rather than transfer the jobs out.

I like this public works project idea what was released in yesterday’s newspaper and will be looking deeper into what that really does entail. That, roads, bridges and the like is a good use for government spending.

I am both excited and apprehensive with Obama taking over. And to answer a quick question, yes I am from Illinois. Being a lazie-fare capitalist I really don’t like regulation and government interference

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
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P.S. Need your brochure translated. Pick your language and if needed pick your country. Yes we do translation work for your sales and marketing pieces.

The Week Ahead for November 24-28, 2008

Monday: October existing home sales
Tuesday: 3rd quarter gross domestic product, November consumer confidence, September Case-Shiller home price index
Wednesday: October personal income and spending, October new home sales, October durable goods orders, Weekly initial jobless claims
Thursday:
Friday:

Larson note: With Congress and President Bush on hold don’t expect many positives here. Until Obama gets a hold of things and puts into place some of his initiatives it will be bad. Personal opinion is that they should have put through another personal bail out in time for Christmas. After reading the paper this morning I am liking Obama’s 2 year idea on creating jobs though boosting our nations infrastructure, I really like it!

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. For those looking for more in your telesales efforts, ask about our new inbound telesales service

How to Keep The Creative Juices Flowing

Cold weather tip: Letting the Faucet Drip Will Prevent Freeze-up

When you live up north, a faucet that was not dripping was the sign of a frozen pipe in the possible near future. The same goes for advertising and marketing work. You have to keep the creative faucet dripping. You have to keep ideas moving and your psyche motivated. When we feel our ideas can't flow, we will literally stop trying. It got me to wondering, if cold weather freezes pipes, what freezes up ideas?

Connectivity: Being attached to the world via Treos, Blackberrys or iPhones is a sure way to keep us from thinking. Or not. I know I'm too busy responding to e-mails to just take a walk in the park to think through a problem but yet I find the time. All these electronic gadgets and nice and helpful but are they a help or a distraction? These devices are great tools, but they should not be allowed to become a shackle. I heard about a creative director who was offered an awesome job that he turned down simply because the agency was adamant that he be reachable 24/7 through his agency-supplied Blackberry. I don’t blame him. No amount of money is worth that. Another problem is our consumption of too much garbage that wastes time to solve problems. We must unplug ourselves if we want to connect with our best thinking.

There are a lot of examples of burnout in business. It's a result of the same type of problem the Blackberry causes: Too many things to pay attention to that have nothing to do with thinking and creativity. Many agencies require their employees to work so many hours, there is little time for personal hygiene let alone a personal life, much less experiencing the world we're supposed to be able to communicate effectively with. A person simply can't be spontaneous when he is worried about getting a mountain of work done in the next 24 hours, day in and day out. When deadlines becomes the daily life, it works like subzero temperatures on an unwrapped pipe.

We all create differently to develop ideas. I like to think and jot ideas down on a note pad. Others like to doodle pictures. Some like to sample from books and magazines, etc. It really doesn't matter how you come up with a great idea. What matters is that you are always moving forward you your thinking. There isn't much room to explore in a 7' by 7' cubicle office. So get out, enjoy the day, See and feel some real sun shing and wind in your hair, but you need to know the difference between being productive and goofing off. If you consistently produce great thinking, you know you’re on the right track.

Another observation about cold-weather plumbing. If you leave the faucet wide open, there is a lot of wasted. Turn the faucet off completely and you get shut off from what you need, when you need it. The key to being productive is balance. Know when you need to walk away and give the problem time to simmer and cook in the deep dark recesses of your brain. Have confidence that you are working on it while you're taking that walk running or having lunch with your wife. Don’t be surprised if your ideas always have a fresh feel and your “other” life in balance

Larson note: You need to be multidimensional. A one dementional person is just that, paper thin, uninspired, and unexciting.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
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P.S. Need your brochure translated. Pick your language and if needed pick your country. Yes we do translation work for your sales and marketing pieces.

*Advertising Age

Why Use Email Marketing

Companies across all industries are devoting more of their time, resources, and budgets to email marketing. Email typically costs less than other direct marketing channels and the return exceeds most other initiatives. This year, the average return for every dollar spent on email marketing was $45.06. Compared to non-email Internet marketing's return of $19.94, direct response newspaper advertising's $16.86, non-catalog direct mail's $15.55, telemarketing's $8.61, and catalog marketing's $7.28, it is easy to see why companies are ramping up their email marketing programs.

In order to achieve the highest ROI, email marketers must get savvy and revise their strategies. For example, monthly email newsletters that were sent out to the entire subscriber base are being converted to targeted weekly mailings that only contain the information that is most relevant to each subscriber. Targeted emails nearly double the click-through rates of bulk emails so if you aren't already using advanced tactics like dynamic profiling and dynamic content to segment your lists, now is the time to start.

List acquisition and management, email design, branding, CAN-SPAM compliance, relevancy, deliverability, reputation, metrics, reporting, managing the opt-out process, Holy Cow! It goes on and on.

Larson note: Email marketing is good, Make no bones about it. Put that together with some other marketing techniques and you have yourself one heck of a Marketing attack. I use it for my monthly newsletter. Why? Because it works.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need your brochure translated. Pick your language and if needed pick your country. Yes we do translation work for your sales and marketing pieces.

Brand American and Barack Obama

During the last eight years, "Brand America" has taken a bit of a beating. With two wars being waged under the Bush administration, some in other countries have come to see the U.S. as a global bully, uninterested in what the rest of the world has to say. At times, that attitude has rubbed off on U.S.-based companies, making their jobs harder. With the rest of the world quite obviously pulling for Barack Obama in the recent presidential race, will his election change perceptions abroad?

Do you think "Brand America" will bounce back with the Obama administration?

Yes 78%
No 22%

Larson note: Actions always speak louder than words. Right now yes, the world is looking at this as a very positive step. One that says American really believes in what it says and promotes. Brand America is looking very strong right now, can Business America follow suite?

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need your brochure translated. Pick your language and if needed pick your country. Yes we do translation work for your sales and marketing pieces.

Why wait for a new President?

Happily, President-elect Obama has already co-sponsored trade laws to hold China accountable for its currency transgressions.

Obama's Blueprint For Change http://www.barackobama.com/pdf/ObamaBlueprintForChange.pdf includes renegotiating free trade agreements to include environmental and safety standards on par with the U.S. to level the playing field for U.S. manufacturers.

The plan includes reducing the U.S.' dependence on foreign oil by broadening the country's energy resources, prioritizing on next-generation domestic energy sources.

The plan also includes the creation of an Advanced Manufacturing Fund to identify and invest in the most compelling advanced manufacturing strategies. The "comprehensive energy independence and climate change plan will invest in American's highly-skilled manufacturing workforce and manufacturing centers to ensure that American workers have the skills and tools they need to pioneer the first wave of green technologies that will be in high demand throughout the world."

It "will also provide assistance to the domestic auto industry to ensure that new fuel-efficient vehicles are built by American workers."

Larson note: If you were reading my blog back in September I pushed for and am pushing for a better currency policy than what we have now. Dare I say a world currency? I pushed for and am pushing for self reliance for my own personal energy production, dare I say personal wind and solar energy production? Yes I like this. It’s a good START. Now let’s keep the ball rolling.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need your brochure translated. Pick your language and if needed pick your country. Yes we do translation work for your sales and marketing pieces.

Multicultural Efforts Lack Funding, Internal Support

Of all the people and companies involved in multicultural ethnic marketing only 45% of Marketers Surveyed Are Satisfied With Results

After years of marketing to ethnic minorities, fewer than half of marketers surveyed are happy with their own company's efforts. In a new survey the Association of National Advertisers conducted for its annual Nov. 16-18 multicultural conference, just 45% of respondents said they are satisfied with the results of their companies' multicultural initiatives, and 26% said they are somewhat or very dissatisfied.

And only about three-quarters of marketers, 77%, do multicultural marketing at all, although 66% said their company's efforts have grown in the past few years.

The survey was based on responses from 74 ANA members contacted in August.

Lack of multicultural marketing dollars was the biggest source of frustration for marketers surveyed, a problem that is only likely to get worse as recession-hit companies slash spending next year. More than half of respondents (58%) cited lack of funding as one of their barriers, followed by lack of metrics to measure performance (45%).

One of the biggest problems multicultural marketing execs complain about every year when they gather at the ANA conference is the lack of support from within their own companies, where success depends on having a champion in the C-suite. Almost half (45%) of the marketers surveyed said they don't get enough internal support, and 34% said support from top management is inconsistent. Respondents were also critical of their companies' ability to integrate multicultural marketing into the overall marketing mix.

At many companies, multicultural marketing is synonymous with targeting Hispanics. Ninety-five percent of respondents said they target Hispanics, up from 86% in a previous survey in 2003. Three-quarters (76%) market to African-Americans, up from 60% in 2003. There has been little progress for Asian-Americans, targeted by just 38% of respondents, a small increase from 35% in 2003.

Fifty-five percent of marketers surveyed said they preferred to use a specialized multicultural agency for creative work. Satisfaction scores indicated that they are much happier with their agencies than the one-quarter of respondents who rely on their general-market agency of record for multicultural work.

The best creative and strategy usually comes from agencies that specialize in Hispanic or African-American advertising, although more general-market agencies are rushing to try to develop Hispanic expertise to cash in on that growing market. Marketers like Wal-Mart Stores and Bank of America have found that Hispanics represent a big chunk of their growth, so they try not to slash those budgets.

Larson note: As America diversifies companies will need to look at multicultural marketing more and more. Just look at the Hispanic and Indian groups. Money does talk, make no doubt it. In the short term it might seem like a black hole, but as you focus on the dynamic possibilities of what is possible, you will need to think of it as an investment. The big guys Wal-Mart and Jewel Foods focus locally in there ethnic and cultural marketing and so should you. Heck here in Chicago Jewel Food Stores in Skokie actually set up a kosher section that is closed during the Sabbath. The small delis where outraged but it worked(s). Look at who is in your geographic circle of potential business and find groups that are for the most part being ignored. You might find a diamond in the rough.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need your brochure translated. Pick your language and if needed pick your country. Yes we do translation work for your sales and marketing pieces.

P&G Executive Not Sure Marketers Belong on Facebook

Social networks may never find the ad dollars they're hunting for because they don't really have a right to them, said Ted McConnell, general manager-interactive marketing and innovation at Procter & Gamble Co.

In a talk to the Digital Non-Conference, a program by Cincinnati's Digital Hub Initiative presented by the Ad Club of Cincinnati and attended by about 190 people, Mr. McConnell pointed to the drumbeat of complaints about social networks being unable to monetize their sites.

"I have a reaction to that as a consumer advocate and an advertiser," he said. "What in heaven's name made you think you could monetize the real estate in which somebody is breaking up with their girlfriend?"

He went on to apply a similar standard to the broader world of consumer-generated media. "I think when we call it 'consumer-generated media,' we're being predatory," he said. "Who said this is media? Media is something you can buy and sell. Media contains inventory. Media contains blank spaces. Consumers weren't trying to generate media. They were trying to talk to somebody. So it just seems a bit arrogant. ... We hijack their own conversations, their own thoughts and feelings, and try to monetize it."

While it's not a company policy, but rather a personal preference, Mr. McConnell said, "I really don't want to buy any more banner ads on Facebook."

That's not to say he believes P&G should end all involvement with Facebook. He cited Facebook applications as a potentially valuable vehicle for advertisers, one in which they can create an environment that's favorable for their brands and consumers alike.

But while he appreciates the power of targeting afforded by Facebook, Mr. McConnell said, it also makes him uncomfortable.

He said a subordinate of his did an experiment in which he set out to use Facebook to find a 22- to 27-year-old female P&G employee living in Cincinnati "who likes sex and Cocoa Puffs -- that was literally the target ID he asked for Facebook to find." And he found such a person.

"So the targeting is fantastic," Mr. McConnell said. "You can do really amazing things. But I'm not so sure I want to be targeted like that. ... I don't think everything every consumer says to someone else and writes down is somehow monetizable by the media industry."

More broadly, Mr. McConnell said he believes marketer dollars will continue to flow online, but that won't necessarily be a boon to online publishers, because online display inventory continues to grow faster than the dollars going after it.

He cited research by Morgan Stanley showing cost-per-thousand rates on banner ads falling from $3 to $1 on average during this decade. And despite rapid growth of internet audiences in markets such as Brazil and China, he said, advertisers are able to pay CPMs of about 5 cents because of the even more rapid explosion of inventory there.

"Fragmentation thwarts artificial scarcity," he said, noting that CPMs for rich media have held up somewhat better. Search CPMs are growing largely because of Google's quality-scoring system, he said.

Despite the growth of online classified-advertising alternatives, Mr. McConnell said, classified revenue for offline publishers continues to dwarf online classified spending, leaving plenty of remaining revenue for newspapers and room for growth for online alternatives.

But the divergence of fortune for pay-per-click and other performance-based models vs. CPM-based models will only intensify as the economy worsens, Mr. McConnell predicted. "'Spray and pray' is a little harder to do when you're under economic pressure," he said. "So performance-based advertising will gain share over CPM."

Larson note: Since when does media need to be something you buy. As a person and company which practices guerrilla marketing I think free (or inexpensive) is good. Its all in the results or Return On Investment (RIT) that is important. Laughing, right off the bat the big company guy(s) need control. Control in SM oh come on! Not going to happen, you either learn to make it work for you or don’t work it. Either the big boxes will learn that time in an investment as mush as money is or they will be locked out of all Business Social networking really can offer a company. Let them have pay for clicks, banner ads, and those things they can manage by money.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need help getting started or actively working SM’s try our Social Business Networking Marketing service.

Measurement, analytics tools must keep up with video media

As the latest in a series of steps that has changed the use of video and long-form footage online, Google opened YouTube up to search ads last week, allowing advertisers to tie their com­mercials to specific words entered into YouTube's search box.

Last year, the big word running around online multimedia was engagement. Everyone was thinking about a union of interactive video, microsites and branding that would capture a viewer's attention. The engagement metric was about time spent on a Web site and brand exposure.

But marketers got cold feet before tying the knot with the metric. In most cases, it couldn't properly measure the specific actions that Web navigators take, making it difficult to monetize directly from these flashy entertainment hubs or inform usability patterns on a homepage.

As we more forward the ad industry and, more importantly, the consumer has remained enthralled with is online video. In fact, the failure of engagement as a metric helped prove the value of rich media when attached to more concrete metrics, such as clickthroughs, downloads or search terms. The market for engaging online media expanded: networks began posting original content, TV became more digitized, mobile phones streamed video and more specific keywords and elegant clip-tracking abilities have become available.

Refining measurement is what this industry does best, and despite difficult economic times, next year's champions will find new ways to add measurement to media, new or old, that engage and delight consumers.

Larson note: In order for something to really get pushed usually it has to be measurable. Companies will not put money into things that don’t have a payback and the only way they really know that is measurement. Sure there is or are amateur videos floating around the web but to get quality, really quality takes money. And for that money to appear requires managed results and managed return on investment. Sit back and enjoy.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need help getting started or actively working SM’s try our Social Business Networking Marketing service.

Price Increases at USPS

UPS, FedEx and yes the US Postal service will raise rates too.

Pricing for shipping services will change on January 18, the US Postal Service announced following a vote by its Board of Governors.

Prices will change for Express Mail, Priority Mail, Parcel Select, Parcel Return Service and some international shipping products. Overall, shipping services prices will increase an average of 5 percent. The new prices are available at www.usps.com/prices

New for 2009 is Commercial Plus pricing. New Commercial Plus prices for Express Mail are 14.5 percent less than retail on average, and for Priority Mail 7 percent less than retail on average, the USPS said.

Larson note: If you are a shipper look for your best value, Look at all options including (if you’re a larger shipper) over the road tucking companies looking to take on partial loads rather than dead head an empty truck. If you’re a mailer, or rely on overnight express service, shop around and negotiate. What a term, ask for the “good guy discount” or do I hear DSL?

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need help getting started or actively working SM’s try our Social Business Networking Marketing service.

UPS releases new rates for 2009

UPS announced its new shipping rates for 2009, which will include an average 5.9% increase for group packages, as well as an average increase of 4.9% on air express and US Shipments sent abroad. The new rates take effect on January 5, 2009. UPS Freight announced a general rate increase of 5.9% which customers will be able to download the new rates and service guide at ups.com/rates beginning on December 18th.

Last month FedEx announced it Express package and freight rates will increase and average of 6.9% for its US and US Export Service

Larson note: Well at least you have the time to get your shipping costs in line for upcoming projects. You had to see this was coming, with the spike in gas and fuel costs. Be it UPS. FedEx,. DSL, who ever. Shipping can be a make or break cost in a business, the difference between profit and loss. Keep yours in line.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need help getting started or actively working SM’s try our Social Business Networking Marketing service.

The Secret to Finding Time For Social Media

Keeping up with social media can be a taxing time consuming task.

Here's the secret: Pick a couple of social networks -- mine are Twitter and some ning groups, MerchantCircle and MySpace -- and concentrate on those. You can't be everywhere and you don't need to be everywhere.

Because social media is one part of my business, I do try every new platform that comes along. I will open an account in each one so I can see how they work, who's using them and what kind of usefulness they could have to me, my business and/or my clients. But I don't go back to most social networks and work them unless there is something on them picks up is a productive use of my time. And I know when that happens because Twitter's open on my desktop almost all day.

E-mail comes second (after checking for voice messages). Anyone who knows me is more likely to get a quicker response from a phone call rather an email but my emails are (usually) responded to with in an hour of being sent. But I like the phone. I know: phone calls! What a concept!

There are people (like Robert Scoble, who follows 21,000 people on Twitter and has 38,000 followers there) who manage to be superstars in every known social network.

For us mere humans, the key to effective social networking is to be selective. Then listen, link, respond and give more than we take. And, hey, Rule One is still that social networking is fun and if done right can be profitable.

Larson note: You need to keep yourself under control. SM can eat your time faster than reading and sending out emails. Pick your time and places carefully. I like to play the part of big fish in a small pond (except for MySpace).It works, I’m noticed and that is what is important, and in doing so customers come to me more often than I going after them in a more aggressive fashion.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need help getting started or actively working SM’s try our Social Business Networking Marketing service.

The Week Ahead for November 17-20, 2008

Monday: October Industrial Production
Tuesday: October Producer Price Index
Wednesday: October Consumer Price Index, Federal Reserve Meeting Minutes, October Housing Starts
Thursday: Weekly Initial Jobless Claims, October Leading Economic Indicators
Friday:

Larson note: Big reporting week to say the least. Look for positives in pricing and negative in production and housing. Then go back and look at your short term business plan and see what that does to your projections on the mico-level. Refocus and expand into other areas? Keep in mind the Obama factor in the next 3 to 4 months.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. For those looking for more in your telesales efforts, ask about our new inbound telesales service

Marketers Must Engage the Muslim Consumer

Muslim Market is a $170 Billion Market, Why Aren't You Targeting It?

This is an excerpt from the white paper "American-Muslim Identity: Advertising, Mass Media & New Media." A longer version can be found at Desedo Films' blog.

"I’ve seen plenty of things making fun of us. ... We would love to be part of a general marketing campaign if the media world would accept Muslims as a common part of the North American diaspora." -- Amethyst, creator of Ninjabi

Advertising in the U.S. has often influenced the pop-culture identities of religious and ethnic minorities. To be targeted by marketers serves as an invitation to join in the national narrative of capitalism. To shop is to be an American. That being said lets look at the Muslim market for what it is or could be.

In the coming years, the U.S. market will likely begin to recognize and court the $170 billion purchasing power of American Muslims. To date, pop-culture representations of Islam are either cloaked in evil or infused with pathos. But as Hallmark, Wal-Mart and 20th Century Fox begin creating content engaging this demographic, it will slowly help to show that American Muslims are, as Farid Senzai said, "as boring as the rest of us."

When considering advertising's slow embrace of the Islamic consumer, we must acknowledge legal scholar Leti Volpp's point that "Sept. 11 facilitated the consolidation of a new identity category that groups together people who appear Middle Eastern, Arab or Muslim. This consolidation reflects a 'racialization' wherein members of this group are identified as terrorists and misidentified as citizens."

It is this perception that created the Dunkin' Donuts controversy. In a 2008 campaign for Dunkin', spokeswoman Rachael Ray wore a scarf that looked like a keffiyeh. Conservative blogger and Fox analyst Michelle Malkin then chided Ray for wearing a "jihadi chic" garment. Dunkin' Donuts dropped the advert. At no point was the spot even attempting to engage Islam or the Middle East, yet there was a backlash.

This is similar to the hurdles brands faced when first reaching out to gay and lesbian consumers. Another huge market (see earlier blogs) And as Saad Ahmad, of the blog Chill Yo, Islam Yo, said, "Seeing that we live in a capitalist society, [including Islam] in advertising is really just an economic issue."

As Almas Abbasi, a radiologist on Long Island, told The New York Times, "If Ramadan starts, and you see an ad in the newspaper saying, 'Happy Ramadan, here's a special in our store,' everyone will run to that store."

American brands do things within primarily Islamic countries -- Burger King in the United Arab Emirates, Hewlett-Packard in Bangladesh, Oreos in Indonesia, etc. But to date, no Muslim holidays are seized as sales opportunities in the U.S., except perhaps in Dearborn, Mich., the city with the highest concentration of Muslims and Middle Eastern folks in America. Wal-Mart has opened a store in Dearborn designed for this demo. According to Newsweek:

Wal-Mart offers its standard fare, plus 550 items targeted at Middle Eastern shoppers. ... Walk through the front door of the 200,000-square-foot supercenter and instead of rows of checkout counters, you find a scene akin to a farmers market in Beirut. Twenty-two tables are stacked high with fresh produce such as the kusa and batenjan, squash and eggplant used in Middle Eastern dishes. ... A walled-off section of the butcher case is devoted to halal meats.

Ikea has taken measures to court Dearborn shoppers, and the local McDonald's and KFC serve halal meat. On the national scale, Hallmark carries Eid cards, and the U.S. Postal Service issued an Eid stamp in 2001. But that's about it.

While tailoring products to reach this consumer base is one important step for retailers, author Yasmine Hafiz reminds us that "the average Muslim consumer is much like the average American consumer, with wants and needs mainly dictated by their income, education and type of family. Their socioeconomic status dictates their spending habits more than their religious affiliation. ... There's a lot of untapped buying potential amongst all these doctors and engineers."

And as noted on the blog Muslim Canvas: "I guess the value I see in this marketing stuff is the effect it'll have on the American psyche, rather than the Muslim psyche necessarily. [Seeing] a hijabi mom spreading Jif peanut butter on her son's sandwich or a long-bearded man answering the door on a Domino's commercial, could go a long way for our 'image.'"

Don't forget about the racial diversity in the faith or that only half of U.S. Muslim females wear a hijab. I do believe that new media and transmedia planning proffer a wealth of intelligent ways in which to engage and involve the Islamic consumer base.

And since there is money to be made, this will indeed happen. Soon come the adverts.

Larson note: As we moving into a more diversified American everything is taken into perspective whether we mean to or not, like the Dunkin' Donuts Rachael Ray case sited above. Aside from cultural issues I believe they are looking for people to even try to really understand who they are. Be real and they as all people will respond. Be fake and you will get a cold shoulder.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. Need an Arab American to be working on your sales team in the area of new account acquisition. Call us.

Is E-tailing tougher than retail?

These days being a retailer is hard enough but E-tailing or selling on the internet can be even harder.

In addition to such normal retail issues as product and price, and E-tailer needs to deel with shopping care software, a way to manage returns, and a way to get customers to their e-store.

Just by putting up a site and placing products on your page does not bring you customers. You think all this would be obvious to people getting into E-tailing So many people think that ujsut being online is enough. They have no idea what is involoved in getting real customers.

E-tailing is, I think more competative that regural Retailing because yoru total hiddlen for anyone eyes until you do something. In Retailing you can put up s sign and get lucky with walk in.

When you set up shop, so to speak, not being awair of the costs is the most dangerious pitfalls of any online store start-up.

Your merchant account, digital certificate, creadit card processing fees, are only a start. How wil you handle shipping and returns? How will tranactions get into yoru bookkeeping and accounting system?

Then there is your site. Is it easy to navigate? Is the check out process simple and fast? If people have to click though 4 or 5 pages just to check out they well get frustrated.

Then there is your shopping cart software. It is important to select the correct shopping cart to capture and store customer information. You need and want the customers email address, phone number and shipping address.

You might want to buy and install Google Analytics which will tell where people go on your site, where they look and where the leave from yoru store. All good information to have.

Also make the BUY button BIG, so people can find and see it. If they cant fid the buy button they will not buy!


Larson note: Like al things E-tailing is not as easy or cheep as it looks. If it was everyone would be doing it. Get your costs together. All your costs, then go over things AGAIN. Each % that you loose will take away from your profits.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. For those looking for more in your telesales efforts, ask about our new inbound telesales service

Starbucks' 4Q Profit Down

You know if it’s about coffee I need to report on it so. . .

Starbucks' 4Q Profit Down 97%, Same-Store Sales Drop 8%

But CEO Schultz Believes Struggling Coffee Giant Has Hit Its 'Bottoming-out Milestone'

Restructuring costs have taken a bite out of Starbucks' fiscal fourth-quarter and full-year profits, the retailer reported today. Fourth-quarter earnings plummeted 97%, to $5 million, from $159 million in the year-ago period. The figure includes a $105 million charge for restructuring, and other costs associated with the company's turnaround plan. Full-year earnings also fell, 53%, to $316 million, from $673 million last year.

U.S. same-store sales also plummeted, down 8% from fourth-quarter 2007. The company cited decreased store traffic, as well as lower average customer check prices, thanks in part to a reduction in merchandise and in-store music sales.

"Nobody wants to go through something like this," CEO Howard Schultz conceded. "But we are a much stronger company for having gone through this." Mr. Schultz added that given everything the organization has learned in the last year, "We think we are in a better position to win today than we were a year ago."

Starbucks began to attempt a tricky turnaround in January, when Mr. Schultz retook the flagging company's reins. Since then, Starbucks has become a more visible marketer with mass sampling efforts and prominent newspaper advertising. The company has also shuttered stores across the country and slashed positions at its Seattle headquarters. But same-store sales have continued to slip, and competition from lower-priced competitors has gotten fiercer.

During the call, he stressed that the company has focused on ways of delivering value to consumers without devaluing the brand. Some of those initiatives include a gift-card promotion at Costco, in which the cards are discounted from face value, and a "gold card" launched nationally last week. Cardholders, who will pay $25 per year, will get 10% discounts on purchases, free WiFi and a variety special offers. In the first week, he said the product had surpassed expectations fivefold.

Mr. Schultz chose to compare his same-store sales with those of premium retailers such as Nordstrom and Saks Fifth Avenue, which have reported double-digit declines in comparable store sales. Other fast food companies, however, have recently reported strong same-store sales; McDonald's, for instance, reported third-quarter same-store sales were up nearly 5%.

Pre-empting the comparison, Mr. Schultz said Starbucks does not compete with fast feeders, and that its customer base is not the same. He added that he is even more confident in this assessment after putting value-focused measures in place, including those mentioned above.

Mr. Schultz also said that "signs of improving comps have appeared episodically"; that October same-store sales have not continued to deteriorate; and that the most recent quarter may prove to have been the "bottoming-out milestone."

After touting his company's ability to garner media impressions with events such as its Election Day giveaway, Mr. Schultz was asked if Starbucks might consider boosting its ad spending. While he said the company would continue to be careful about which opportunities it seizes, Starbucks will look for more one-time tactics to deliver similar results.

"We have not been a traditional spender of classic marketing and 'consumer-facing activities' that have been associated with most consumer brands," he said, adding that with the Election Day promotion, the company was able to buy one TV spot and then leverage digital media, PR and word of mouth to significantly boost traffic and buzz around the brand.

Mr. Schultz gave scant details of an upcoming "Black Friday" promotion, which refers to the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season, the day after Thanksgiving, involving the chain's partnership with Product Red and its founder, U2 frontman Bono.

Larson note: When Starbucks started move this they were not getting whacked in the side of the head buy Dunkin’ Donuts and McDonalds and their marketing snipes at the higher and the lower end. Personally I use Starbucks as an office to meet clients at. I like the atmosphere much better than a counter at Dunkin’ Donuts or a booth at McDonald’s but to each there own. Mmmm do I hear Caribou?

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. For those looking for more in your telesales efforts, ask about our new inbound telesales service

Obama Win Could Spur Holiday Sales

Can Barack Obama save Christmas? Or will the Grinch rule?

In a survey by the International Council of Shopping Centers and Goldman Sachs, 8% of respondents said they are likely to increase holiday spending, thanks to the historic election of Sen. Obama to the White House. By contrast, only 5% said they would have increased spending if Sen. John McCain had been elected.

While Michael Niemira, director-research at ICSC, admits those figures don't represent the bulk of consumers, he said it still offers a reason for optimism. "It does say on the margin that getting the election behind us will help," he said. "Now things may change, and that's what we're counting on, even if it's in the margin."

Overall, consumers surveyed by ICSC and Goldman Sachs placed an unusually high emphasis on this election, saying that it was more important than the declining stock market and tanking personal investments as well as job security. "That was a surprising result," Mr. Niemira said. "It may be that the election captured so many different aspects of where consumers felt problems were and how they could be corrected."

Mr. Niemira expects consumer confidence could also begin to recover in the coming months. And a study out from Big Research late last month supports that notion, with 34% of likely voters saying their confidence in the economy would increase with the election of Mr. Obama. By contrast, 26% said their confidence in the economy would increase if Mr. McCain were elected.

"It's not totally clear that any new president at this point in time will have a huge impact right away on the economy and the retail sector," said Mr. Niemira. "But to the extent that Obama is a good speaker, I think he can certainly lift spirits, lift expectations and ultimately maybe speed some of the recovery from the consumer side."

So will we have another round of stimulus? With the election over, retailers are now eager to see whether a proposed lame-duck session to introduce new stimulus legislation will come to fruition. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in October that the House was considering such a session. The Senate is already scheduled to return Nov. 17. Democrats, emboldened by new majorities, could move quickly to push through legislation. However, they could just as easily wait until Mr. Obama takes office, and it's certain the legislation won't be vetoed.

"It's going to be very difficult in this environment, in a short period of time to engage in the give and take that would be necessary when there's a lot of raw nerves post-election," Steve Pfister, senior VP-government relations at the NRF said. "Republicans could say we're not going for any of this. You've got the [Democratic] majority ... They could pass something and have [President] Bush veto it."

Still, if a new stimulus package was pushed through before the holidays, retailers could get more than coal in their stockings. The ICSC-Goldman Sachs survey showed that 39% of respondents would spend the rebate, while 38% would save it and 18% would use it to repay loans. The $100 billion tax stimulus that went out to consumers earlier this year was widely applauded by retailers who reported sales jumps. ICSC said that 34% of consumers spent the earlier rebate money, while 29% saved it and 37% used it to pay down debt.

Larson note: Any port in a storm! Find those positive motives where you can find them. There will be more bail outs coming, Auto sector. Families (again) in time for Christmas? I’ll lay you odds on that one. While countries go around (lately) casting blame on who did what and didn’t do this or that, this is a world wide problem and it will take world wide action and decisions. Can the world unite in one common mode of attack to fix the problems or will each individual country put on little band aids?

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. For those looking for more in your telesales efforts, ask about our new inbound telesales service

Majority Of Companies Avoiding Social Media

The majority of businesses have no formal plans to adopt social media or use its benefits that can lead to better customer relations and increased sales. This should not surprise you at all.

Fear and apathy are the primary barriers to using social media, according to a global survey by Avanade, an IT consultancy company.

Over half of respondents to the survey said senior executives and IT staff resist adoption out of fear it will reduce employee productivity. Good point and in the hands of most it would indeed bring work down to a standstill. Sixty percent believe management does not understand the potential social media offers employees and customers.

"Social media technologies are reaching a turning point -- they are no longer lingering outside the domain of IT departments. Companies that do not adapt to these changes or move fast enough will lose customers," said Mike Pazak, Vice President of Enterprise Business Solutions at Avanade.

"We are working with organizations to deliver solutions that take advantage of the ways social media can impact customer relationships, opening up a new level of internal and external collaboration, trust and loyalty."

Approximately 60 percent of respondents say integrating social media technologies is not on the agenda and only 18 percent have any kind of strategy in place to integrate social media within the company for employees.

Among the companies that are early adopters of social media, two thirds have experienced improved customer satisfaction and 64 percent report an improved reputation in the marketplace.

Only 5 percent of U.S. companies have a fully documented and implemented strategy for integrating social media for use by employees.

The economy is a more influential factor in customer relationship management for U.S. companies than their international peers. Eighty-five percent of U.S. companies say that as we enter an economic downturn, businesses need to focus on new ways of communication with customers that add value.

Larson note: Big companies are just starting to learn how to use MySpace and Facebook in marketing. Can they get down to the smaller entities on the ning groups and twitter attacks? They are, but their employees have the focus not to let the power of SM be corrupted? Will they stick to business of delve into monkey business? That is the fear of lager business.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. For those looking for more in your telesales efforts, ask about our new inbound telesales service

What are micro communities?

Let me start off by saying, the concept of Social Media is not a new one. “Social Media" together with "Web 2.0" makes it look new. Social Media has been around since the inception of the Internet. Stop and think a moment, some of the most powerful social media outlets for your clients, services and products have been around a very long time - Forums and Message Boards.

Forums and Message Boards are full of usually relevant content around a particular subject. Whether its subject is about collecting comics, fan fiction writing, or making crafts most forums have a lot of "power" when it comes to value and optimization of your website (think age of domains, relevant content, etc.). They also are able to offer traffic from very qualified resources, and these are resources that really would be more interested in what you have to say.

So now, maybe you are getting an idea of what micro-communities are? Micro-Communities are specific communities built around niches. When it comes to social media it can encompass a wide variety of social media types from specific social news sites (BallyHype, Sk*rt), bloggers blogging about very finite subjects, specific communities (WebMD, Corkd), to fourms/message boards (Cre8asite, Rotten Tomatoes). All of these social media types provide user generated content created by people interested in one particular niche.

When marketing to micro-communities you need to look beyond the particular website that caters to creating a community to one niche. You have to open up the possibilities of reaching more people with your message, by only looking at "communities" per se, you limit your reach. Micro-community marketing strategies should include social news sites, blogs and blogging groups, forums and message boards, video and photo sharing sites (think about photo groups and video subscriptions) and also communities. Any where people "share" they are being "social".

Taking the time, researching and being up front and honest about who you are is imperative to marketing to micro-communities. If the community smells a "rat", they'll dump you faster than you can imagine. Trust me when I say, you mess up by not being upfront and honest and your campaign efforts will be done. People in these micro communities talk with each other. Bloggers participate in forums, forum participants engage in social news, social news junkies scour the message boards for new information to post – etc, etc etc!

Micro-communities are a great place to market to a qualified targeted audience, but unless you invest the time and sincere efforts of engaging with a community, your strategy is doomed from the start. The last thing I'd like relate about micro-communities is: remember, these communities tend to be a much smaller scale than Digg, Propeller or StumbleUpon, you shouldn't be after traffic if you are looking to interact with these communities. Digg, Facebook,etc. all have broad and general audiences and can drive tons of unqualified traffic, micro-communities can turn out to be a much bigger "win" if your goal is conversions.

Larson note: You can win and be successful in Social Business Media Marketing, slow down, take you time and be real. Conversations lead to prospects and prospects lead to clients. If you don’t want it to come back and bite you in the butt you will or else you can be black balled. Sake your claim as an expert in a given area and you can own the territory.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. For those looking for more in your telesales efforts, ask about our new inbound telesales service

Twitter to Charge for Commercial Use?

People always want to know how Twitter will make money, and at the Web 2.0 Summit, CEO Evan Williams hinted at the commercial value of the service. But that doesn't mean advertising exactly. States Williams:

"Our model isn't advertising per se," said Williams. "Advertising is more and more a difficult proposition. We're going to insert a message. Twitter's model is quite different. There is commercial information, but it is entirely opt-in. If they don't want it they won't receive it. We could put advertising in the content, but I don't think we're going to do that."

Caronline McCarthy quotes him as saying that Twitter can "charge the people who want to use that communication channel commercially." First of all, keep in mind that none of this is official right now, and speculation is all we really have to go on, but it sounds like we're talking about sponsored profiles. So does this mean that companies would have to pay for the type of thing CareerBuilder is doing?

Would such a model be worth it to companies? It could be a reasonable marketing tool considering that people would have to opt-in to follow these sponsors, but would it lead to significant enough results for companies to use Twitter over other social networks where they can use profiles for free? If such a system proved efficient, would other social networks initiate similar models? Now that would turn social media marketing on its ear.

Williams's comments really create more questions than answers, but it is certainly interesting to know that Twitter is thinking along these lines at all. It will be something to keep an eye on.

Rafe Needleman has a thought-provoking look at 11 possible business models for Twitter. They range from selling advertising to selling plush "failwhales".

Larson note: Sometimes companies think they are all too important. Before twitter there was good old yahoo IMs or other forms of instant messaging. There were forums and message boards. Tweeter is not much more than that is it?

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. For those looking for more in your telesales efforts, ask about our new inbound telesales service

Top 5 Web Categories by Daily Visits

62% Search Engines
27% Social Networking
27% General News
19% Online Banking
13% Sports News

*Source: Rubicon Consulting. 3,036 US Web Users age 13 and up. September 2008.

Larson Note: Gives you a window of how to attract customers to your site and how to allocate your time and funds. .SE campaigns, SN efforts and time, banner ads?

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Telesales & Target Marketing Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

The Week Ahead for November 10-14, 2008

Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Thursday: Weekly Initial Jobless Claims, September Trade Balance
Friday: October Retail Sales, September Business Inventories, November University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index

Larson note: Look for the silver lining in the reports this week, things like trade balance. Other things will not be pretty but keep your micro-economy in perspective you don’t need to be gloom and doom

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson


P.S. For those looking for more in your telesales efforts, ask about our new inbound telesales service

Blog Reading Percentages

Are you a blog writer? Why do you write them? Do they do you or your business any good? Does anyone ready them?

6% Read Blogs Daily
6% Read Blogs Weekly
7% Read Blogs Monthly
53% Have not read a blog in the past year

*Source: A portion of Harnessing the Power of Blogs survey. Jupiter Research / Buzzlogic. August 2008. Sample 2,210 US online community.

Larson Note: Is there a key to getting your blogs read. Is there a way to have that hard work pay off in sales and new accounts? Yes, but it’s a company secret.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Telesales & Target Marketing Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

Marketing for the Holidays – Thought 4

Today let’s take a look at your online store.

Every year we get the hype on how important the Holiday gift season is. And yes it is important so you as companies across the county enter it you try to step up your advertising and marketing. So today here are some keys to some things may retailers ignore?

First, know your customers. Successful holiday marketing and advertising demands that you understand your customers unique habits, desires needs and tolerances. Special deals, product bundles, holiday themed showcases and free shipping are still among the most effective things to do but, its important to incorporate these strategies into your entire Customer Relation Management (CRM) framework.

You need to delight your customers. Make their shopping experience as enjoyable, intuitive and hassle-free as possible. This can include holiday specific navigation that places a heavier emphasis on recipient shopping of relevant gift advice.

There are simple tools that can speed the process I and truly showcase the benefits of shopping online with YOU. These could be recommendation modules, product comparisons, shipping calculators and a list of the most popular “in demand” items your carry.

Then service your customers. The holidays are stressful enough and the problem is sometimes exagerated when shopping online where you don’t have anyone to talk to or ask for help. Online retailers need to service their customers more effetely by setting high expectations. Make email address and phone numbers for customer service easy to find. E-mail out shipping notifications, and having realistic arrival dates. Streamline your checkout process and have “quick buy” options that tie in with their other purchases at the end can up sell your customers with items they need but might not have though about.

Larson note: Do things right and you will have move sales, larger sales and more referrals. This is the holiday sales war season. Don’t be timid. You got to come out with both barrels firing

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Telesales & Target Marketing Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

Estee Lauder uses Social Media for Breast Cancer

Estee Lauder’s 16 year old “Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign” an autumn tradition to its Pink Ribbon has put into place a major digital component this year.

The campaign will have its largest online presence ever this year including Social Media, display ads and special content.

Estee Lauder wanted to take this years campaign further and deeper into the digital area by leveraging the experience they have been gaining in Social Media with there other brands.

The hope is to make this years campaign much more integrated with participation and reaching a newer younger audience.

Participation is important because “women need to share” stated Marisa Thalberg VP of Global Digital Marketing for Estee Lauder. If Estee Lauder can put out the message about breast cancer in front of woman online in a participatory way “women who are not exposed to these messages in traditional media will have a way to think about it” she said.

Estee Lauder teamed up with Brickfish for a storytelling portion of the campaign. Individuals are encouraged to share inspirational stories about how breast cancer has affected them. This portion of the campaign will be hosted on Estee Lauder’s web sires including infaveda.com and Cinique.com . O two; asp be supported with display ads.

Estee Lauder will also being its message to MySpace, Facebook and other social networks though a partnership with Slide, a publisher of social networking applications such as SuperPoke.

This campaign is showing how Social Media has really become a powerful way for woman to communicate with one another. Thalberg added that “Estee Lauder might not even know how far-reaching this campaign is because of the virtual nature.

Larson note: Wow! What a perfect example of how to weave SM, web and print together in a powerful way letting people reach out. We all need to sit back and study who they have put this whole campaign together, I know I will be!


Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Telesales & Target Marketing Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

What Are Assisting Keywords?

What are assisting keywords and how can they improve your (paid) search performance?

When someone is looking for something in a broad way they often hit on multiple keyword ads as they sort though and make there purchasing decisions. The keywords that proceed the last click are known as assisting keywords. Many marketers tend to only measure the last click before a prospect converts or may not track the entire search funnel, meaning these terms usually don’t receive credit for aiding in a click though. This can put you in a blind spot when setting up your optimizing in a search engine campaign.

In using search tools to accurately measure the value of your keywords and be able to analyze the roll they plan in the entire search plan, you can determine if you are putting enough money or time on the “non-brand” terms that help to lead customer conversions on other items you have listed. You will most likely find you will need to reallocate some of your budget (or time).

Larson note: It all matters. It all counts. There is so much “secret stuff” out there on the interent to really make your web site seen, found and working. You can’t just throw your hands up and walk away. The web is too big, too powerful and too essential to do that. If you have the knowledge to do it yourself great go for it, if you don’t, find someone or some company that does. That’s the beauty of our system if you don’t have the necessary knowledge you can purchase it.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Telesales & Target Marketing Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

Marketing for the Holidays – Thought 3

Today lets take a look at search campaigns.

If you reading this and have not already started getting your advertising and marketing ready for the Christmas season YOUR LATE!

So what to do? First start NOW. ASAP. It can take awhile to build up a strong quality score and product the right analysis as to the keywords to use; the right copy the correct landing pages.

I would be remiss to say that if you did not start back in at lest August you have a serious uphill battle infront of you. This might call for some professional help if you are serious and I know some good ones for you to call.

Start by using last year’s data. Holiday shopping is different from any other time of the year and because of that holiday search behavior is also different from any other time of the year. So when you’re trying to get the best data to predict holiday search behavior and results look to last year’s holiday’s search activity. You kept track of that right? That data will give you strong clues as to how searcher will behave this year, again.

Finally if you have got it, as the saying goes, flaunt it. Work hard to tout the things you offer that your competitors don’t, Tout your competitive selling points, your lower prices, your free shipping, your wider selection and your superior customer service. Yes if you have it totally let it out and flaunt it. Especially during the big spending holiday gift season.

Larson note: A good search campaign can not only raises your sites visibility to people who normally would not find you but raise your status in the eyes of your current web customers. If they can’t find you they can’t buy from you. It’s that plain and simple. Key words, landing page, navigatablity, local search, buying key words. It’s late but not too late.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Telesales & Target Marketing Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

Social Storytelling

Question: How long can branded stories last in a digital arena?
Answer: As long as you're willing to continue the conversation.

It has recently been argued by several industry sages that in the digital world, storytelling in advertising was not doing a very good job. I have to disagree. The stories are just being told in a different way than they were in the past.

Storytelling in advertising used to be a one-way street: creatives would dream up a 30-second story, put it on TV and cross their fingers that consumers found it funny or appealing. The best case was when people would stand around the water cooler the next morning. Then, if the first spot was somewhat successful, the agency would get a chance to fire another salvo. It was a continuous monologue that treated consumers as targets for a message, not as collaborators or co-conspirators.

Today, we look at any "first contact" with a consumer as the opening line of a conversation that will hopefully be the beginning of a beautiful friendship. This is especially true in digital marketing, where the water cooler is built into the system, so to speak. Any activity worth mentioning has some kind of interactivity and dialogue built into it. Think about it this way: Storytelling used to be a closed loop. As Aristotle said: "A story needs to have a beginning, a middle, and an end." Social storytelling flies in the face of that. It is open-ended. The objective i to tell a story in a way that leaves room for the consumers to fill in the blanks, to add their own tendrils to the main storyline.

The simplest examples of this type of consumer participation are the comments on YouTube. Some of them might be in LOL-speak and fairly indecipherable, but if you take time to read and follow you'll not only learn a lot about the brand you are marketing, but about how consumers perceive your marketing efforts. This feedback loop can sometimes lead to brilliant ideas for your next campaign, too.

A great case in point is the recent EA spot for their Tiger Woods golf game. Someone had uploaded a video of Tiger walking on water inside the game, presenting it as an embarrassing glitch. EA and its agency (Wieden + Kennedy) looked at this video and decided to enter the conversation. They shot a live-action spot of Tiger actually walking on water and stated that it wasn't a glitch in the game, Tiger is just that good. Then they uploaded it as a response to the original video on YouTube. This is the kind of social interaction that earns you tons of respect in the digital world. That the video went viral to the tune of several million views and also made everyone aware there was a new version of EA's Tiger Woods golf game was almost a side effect.

Part of the mandate for any brand marketer should be that the effort is a catalyst for social dialogue. As an example, AKQA created a mobile application for Nike—Nike PhotoiD. It works like this: You take a photo with your phone and send it to a designated number. Nike then extracts the two dominant colors from the scene to create a pair of classic 1985 Dunk hi-top basketball sneakers in those colors, send a picture of the shoes back to you, and gives you the option to purchase them. That's the beginning of the conversation between the consumer and Nike. But the bigger idea, from the social storytelling perspective, is to use this branded utility as an ongoing conversation starter. Once your kicks arrive, someone comments on them and the discussion gains momentum. Not only will you talk about the place you were when you took the picture that led to these sneakers, you'll also talk about how the colors got onto your shoes and how they were created by sending a photo from your phone. Nine times out of 10 that will lead to the other person trying it out themselves, leading to the next conversation. Summing up, here are six checkpoints that'll help get you started mastering the art of social storytelling and invite consumers into the conversation:

1. Look at any marketing effort as the beginning of a conversation.

2. Closely monitor the conversation and be ready to respond to consumers.

3. Provide consumers with tools that help them carry on the conversation for you.

4. Leave room for consumers to interact. Make sure your creative universe is big enough that there are unexplored areas.

5. The conversation is over when the consumers say it is, not when the media plan (or the budget) says it is.

6. Listen and learn from the feedback loop.

Larson note: Stories can be told online in all which ways. IM, blog, twitter, any form of social networking if they converse they could be conversing about you. Tell a story and float it out there, you might just be surprised. You or your company could be the subject of conversation.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Telesales & Target Marketing Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://businessiibusiness.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate