Thursday, February 26, 2015

Let The Media Make You A Celebrity - Create A Television Show On Local Cable Access Channel In Your Area Part 3 of 3

While marketing to your past customers is the easiest way to find easy-to-close prospects, being on television is a great way to reach many more new prospects. Just imagine the audience you could reach if you could be on television. Well, in this current economic market, advertising your business on television should definitely be one of your marketing campaigns and it doesn't have to cost you a penny.

One of the best kept secrets in advertising is the power of using local cable access channels in your target market to reach prospects at little to no money out of pocket. The reason for the secrecy is mostly because big ad agencies can't charge you exorbitant fees to recommend this resource to you. In most cases, local cable access channels help you create a program to air on their channels in your geographic area at no cost, therefore you get advertising at no substantial cost to you.

While there is no monetary cost to being on public access television, there are some requirements that you must meet in order to take advantage of these incredible resource.

The first major requirement is that you must create a twenty five to thirty minute program which can be aired several times a week. The program you create must be educational and informative to the audience. My suggestion would be to partner with other local businesses to create a local expert panel show.

The products on the show could come from your business, but the advice would come from the expert panel you would bring together. You could even tape the television show in your own business using the camera equipment from the television station. With public access television, they allow you to borrow their equipment for several days at a time.

The second requirement to being on public access television is you are limited to not blatantly advertising your business or product when you are on public access television. This may seem like a huge problem, but it's really not that big of a deal. All you have to do is create a program which educates people and mention where people can reach you for more information.

You can probably even create a special website just for your program that isn't a hard selling website, but will give information about where you operate your business from.

If you do not have experience with recording and editing a television show, don't worry too much. The television station has a professionally trained staff who handles all of the details of editing and scheduling your program to air. All you have to do is produce the content and record it. The rest is handled by the local station.


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Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Let The Media Make You A Celebrity - Start Your Own Internet Radio Show & Podcast - Part 2 of 3

This is an advanced strategy, but if you have the willingness to learn new things, then you can implement this strategy into your business and make huge profits from the fame.

While advertising on the radio can be profitable, it can become extremely expensive if you try to increase your marketing campaign too quickly. There is a way to avoid those costs altogether, and become famous, too.

For the smart business owner, the future of free publicity strategies is internet radio shows. This may come as a total shock to you, but there are internet radio websites which allow you to start your own internet radio show for free.

Websites like Blogtalkradio.com and Shoutcast.com allow anyone who has a computer and microphone to create their own radio show. This means you can become an overnight star if you have the talent and ability to put together a program and event on a fairly consistent basis.

The benefit of starting your own internet radio show is that you do not have to pay for radio air-time and you can create and air a show as often as you like. You also benefit because you are the one calling the shots and writing the content for your show. This means that you can make it as commercial as you like, unlike some of the free publicity strategies.

When creating your own radio show, you can schedule the programming to be as long or as short as you see fit. For example, you can create a one hour show which airs once per week or more.

You can also script the show to include guest speakers, or just simply be built around your business. However, it is in your best interest to create a show that is informative and entertaining because prospects always try to escape the dull, boring hum of everyday life. If your show can provide that entertainment, then your show will practically be guaranteed to succeed.

The real worth of this strategy is in your ability to get an audience filled with your target market. One of the best ways to do this is by posting a link to your radio show on your own website and on the website of your joint venture partners. You can also post your radio show ad on various other online websites where your target market hangs out.

Let me let you in on a little secret: Free publicity is the cheapest way to build your brand. But the right publicity, the kind that can generate leads, build credibility, and increase awareness in the marketplace doesn't happen by accident.

How can you gain positive national exposure that will lead prospects to your product or service? No public relations expert would ever say there isn't at least some element of chance involved in what stories get picked up and which ones don't. However, there is a way to increase the odds.

The best approach is to take a "water-drip" torture approach. Keep getting your name in front of prospects through publicity. Every droplet of attention makes a difference. After a while, your story will break through the clutter in the same way water eventually wears away a stone.

The secret to success is to be sure you're telling a story that's worth printing. The best publicity draws on one of a handful of tried-and-true themes. Newsworthy stories have something that hits you as a reader and that rises above "just the facts." Here are five can't-fail angles that the media loves:

1. Underdog. Do you have a David versus Goliath story to tell? Everybody loves an underdog: You were small and the odds against you were great, but you took on the big guys and won!  If you play this card, you might attract more attention than you ever thought you could.

2. Superman. Do you have the "first, fastest, brightest" story to tell? You don't have to be faster than a speeding bullet or more powerful than a locomotive, but it would help. If you've got a truly unique story - you're the first, or the biggest, or the strongest, or the loudest - then you have a certifiably newsworthy story.

3. Cinderella. Do you have a rags-to-riches story to tell? Stories about the GWOG (Guy Working out of Garage) who strikes it rich always commands public interest. Late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs may represent the quintessential example of the small entrepreneur rising to greatness, but there are countless other examples.

4. Dear Abby. Do you have a "free advice" story to tell? You can't beat free counsel for building trust. Brainstorm the best tips you have to offer customers in your industry. That is the basis for an interesting article.

5. Scientist. Do you have a story based on hard facts and figures? You can assert all you want, but numbers make it real. Research - real, proprietary research carried out by you and featuring your own data - can be a great way to get attention. Conducting a survey works just fine.

Once you've got a newsworthy story, get the word out via public relations services such as PR Newswire and Business Newswire. For a price much less than snail-mail postage to the same number of outlets, your brief release will cross the country or the globe for a few hundred dollars, passing before thousands of journalists across all manner of media outlets.

Other publicity outfits will also handle distribution of your release, especially if you're a small firm or lack a dedicated staff to make contact, handle releases, or do follow-up. Services such as PR Leads will do as little or as much as you want to help you get the word out, from writing your release for a nominal fee to shaping the angle or theme of your story in ways aimed at maximizing media attention.


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Thursday, February 19, 2015

Let The Media Make You A Celebrity - Part 1 of 3

Media is another area that can make you an overnight success. But you need to know how to properly court media outlets. You need to know what they're looking for, how to get their attention, and how to provide the resources that they need to make their job as easy as possible if you want to successfully use media to build your business.

An effective strategy which attracts customers by the carloads is to become a local celebrity. One of the fastest ways to become well known in a marketplace is to be everywhere your target market hangs out or shops.

One of the ways to build your celebrity status is to become a regular guest on the local radio circuit. Very few business owners have ever considered being a radio guest as a way to connect with their prospects and customers while growing their business. 

The reason why being a radio show guest is so effective is because radio show hosts have already taken the time to build relationships with their listeners and you can piggy back off of their success. The truth of the matter is, every radio station needs guests to fill their airtime for their audience. 

The first step in this process is to figure out the radio programs that your prospects listen to on a regular basis. You can accomplish this by asking your customers and prospects on a survey form on your website or in your business. You can reward them for providing the information by giving them a coupon for a discount. 

Once you have that information, you should begin to listen to those specific radio stations for at least a week or more. Listening to the station will provide you with the general flow and outline of the best programming on that station. 

After you get a good feel for a station, you can then begin to come up with an interesting angle or story hook to get their attention. When you have your story angle or hook, you can then hire a writer to write a press release around your idea. You can hire a pretty good writer from websites like ODesk.com Cragislist.com or Getafreelancer.com. 

The writer should also be able to send your press releases to your target radio shows at least once or twice each month for a monthly retainer fee. Your press release will also give the radio station your contact information and story idea. If the radio station chooses your story idea they will contact you for more information. Of course, your ultimate goal is to be invited to be a guest for one of their shows. 

Being a radio show guest does require some skills which you will have to develop in order to be a good guest. For example, you must be entertaining, educational and quick on your feet. It's very much like working with a customer in your office or business, except that you will be speaking into a microphone. 

There are several programs online which instruct you on how to be a radio show guest, so you may want to invest in one of those programs before implementing this strategy into your business. 

How To Get Interviews

You can learn how to get booked for free publicity interviews as an
interview guest to promote your product, service or book on show interviews if you follow these steps:

1.  Become a "Featured Guest Expert:
  • Again you need to “POSITION” yourself properly as an EXPERT in your field who has very valuable information to share. (Again, having your own Best Selling book is an amazing calling card to do this) 
2.  Create and send a targeted pitch: 
  • You need to e-mail, fax, FedEx or call the producers to offer your expertise and information. Remember that the show producers are not interested in you, your book, or your products. Their goal is to find interesting new information that educates and/or entertains their audience. Your job is to craft a pitch that gets their attention. To get radio interviews, your radio interview pitch should offer helpful details of your expertise that fit into their current radio show programming needs. 
3.  Find Your Niche: 
  • You need to identify your niche, find what media that customers in that niche consume, and get to know who the radio, TV, and podcast reporters are who cover that niche. 
4.  Find the Radio / TV / Podcasts for your niche: 
  • Then start reading/watching/listening to the stations and shows that reach your target market to note reporter’s names and specialties, as well as the kinds of stories and formats they prefer.
5.  Identify radio shows that book guest experts like you for interviews
  • The fastest way to do this is to search on Google using search terms like "radio talk show" + "your topic." 
(NOTE: You want to search on “talk radio” rather than just “radio” to find shows that book guest experts for promotional interviews instead of only playing music!)

6.  Find contact info for the radio show’s producers or bookers: 
  • Big, nationally-syndicated talk radio shows have a staff of producers. The best producers to reach are those that find and schedule guest experts and authors for on the air interviews. These producers are called "bookers". For smaller or local radio shows or Internet radio podcasts, the booker, the producers, and the host may all be the same person.
7.  Use attention grabbing headlines: 
  • Many people use "pitch formulas" that encapsulate your expertise into an eye-catching title. Mimic the “teasers” you hear for your evening TV newscast and you’ll be on the right track. Try   “The 7 Secrets about X that They Don’t Want You to Know,” “The Hidden Dangers of X,” “The Surprising Truth about X,” “Why [Latest News Headline] is Great (or Bad) News for Your Audience,” etc.
8.  Make sure that your “News” is newsworthy:
  • News is about current events – that’s why they call it “news.” Your local radio station isn’t interested in hearing about topics that their audiences will ignore. They are looking for “new” topics to cover, or more often, interesting angles on current events. For you this means that you need to keep your pitches fresh and timely. I know that it’s unlikely that your book, products or clients change daily, but the news must. So instead of trying repeatedly to get radio, TV, or podcast coverage of your product itself, try tying its benefits or features to a current event that is already hot in the news.
9.  Offer Real Information, Not Just a Product Pitch
  • To get booked on the radio or interviewed on TV, you need to impress the booking producer with your expertise. They don’t want to interview you on the air just so you can give a commercial for your products. They are looking for timely, interesting, and helpful info that will reward their listeners and watchers for tuning in to their radio show, TV program, or podcast.
10.  Think in terms of stories, not products: 
  • It’s no one’s job to promote your product but you. It is not the obligation of any media outlet to cover you or interview you as a guest expert. Their job is to create interesting stories that offer information to their audiences. 
11.  Tie your pitch to the interests of the reporter or publication you are pitching:
  • Nothing frustrates radio, TV, and podcast journalists and more than having to deal with time wasting pitches that are not appropriate for their outlets.
12.  Be concise: 
  • Because they are deluged with pitches and always working under tight deadlines, broadcasting people cannot afford the time to wade through overly long pitches. You need to make a strong case in a very short space. Liberal use of bullet points, bolds, and highlights is recommended to help the journalist quickly understand what you are offering them. 
13.  Polite follow-up: 
  • Given all the submissions that they receive, even an interested podcast producer or radio booker may not get around to contacting you due to competing distractions. It’s your job to spoon-feed the story to them and convince them that it’s worth covering on their radio, TV, or podcast program. Polite, pleasant, and persistent reminders, whether by e-mail, phone, or letter are a part of doing business in the world of public relations. Additionally, if a reporter says ‘no’ you must believe them and back off. Wait until you have a new angle on the story or a different story entirely to contact them again. 
14.  Include a one-page tip sheet:
  • Provide a succinct list of talking points you would use during your TV or radio show visit. Send it with your initial guest pitch, or if you talk to the producer by phone, offer to email it as a follow-up. This information helps producers envision whether you’ll be an informative guest and makes it easy for them to prepare the show’s hosts for your interview. Bonus: Most hosts will ask you questions based on your tip sheet, which makes your preparation easy!
15.  If you’re pitching TV, think visually: 
  • Is your topic well-suited to props? If you’re talking about PC repairs, could you bring a set of basic tools that viewers at home should have to work on their computers? If you’re a chef, could you prep a simple dish on camera? If so, mention this in your pitch.
16.  Once you’re booked, market your appearance: 
  • Be sure to post news about your upcoming TV or radio spot on Facebook, Twitter, and your website. After your appearance, find out whether the station archives shows; if so, share your segment’s link so customers who missed your appearance can watch or listen to it.
17.  Prepare for an uptick in business:
  • Depending on the popularity of the TV or radio program, you will hopefully see a (temporary) surge in business shortly after your appearance. Stockpile some extra product for orders, and call in extra help to answer the phones or cover your counters. This is your chance to show new customers you’re a real pro — both on and off the air. Remember that this boost is likely to be fleeting, so keep promoting to build momentum. 

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Tuesday, February 17, 2015

How To Host A Very Profitable Friends And Family Sale


The friends and family sale has long been used by the retail industry as a advertising tool to generate customers. However, I have very rarely seen businesses outside of the retail industry use the strategy. Well, why not find a way to make this sale a part of your advertising strategies. After all, the chances are pretty good that your current customers know other people who are similar to them that could use your product or service.

However, before you run out and try this strategy I must give you a word of caution. See, over the years, I have noticed that if you run this sale the wrong way, then  the friends and family sale will just be a huge flop. After much investigating and testing in my own business, I have come to the conclusion that the large majority of time when we promoted our friends and family sales, we mostly got prospects who would have bought days or weeks earlier if we would have just given them the discount earlier. This completely defeats the purpose of having the sale. In fact, we were only risking losing the customer and delaying our profits because we were discouraging the customer from buying today, so that they could get the better sale price later.

So, here's the solution. Create ads that clearly state that the prospect can only get the discount only if they bring friends and family (prospects) with them to the sale. You can even tier the discount to handsomely reward those prospects who bring more friends and family. For example, give a five percent discount if they bring one person, ten percent discount if they bring two, and a fifteen percent discount if they bring three and a whopping twenty percent discount if they bring four people.

However, the key to the entire sale is that the friends and family must fill out a simple little contact information form when they visit your showroom. You can even create a drawing that they are being entered into a contest to win prizes or cash. When you let them know why you're gathering the information, they will not feel as awkward giving you their information. At the very least, this allows you to build your marketing database, and you may even get a sale or two from the friends and families at the sale, but the benefit is that you get to grow your prospecting list.

Finally, make sure the terms of the friends and family sale are well laid out on your website or on the advertisement itself. This will allow your customers to really play the game to get a bargain for themselves while bringing you plenty of potential prospects.     



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