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NewsFlash
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CoinopTODAY.com
The truth is that real marketing is 24/7, 365 days a year You have attended the Fun Expo, IAAPA, Gib Town, and other related trade shows. You have networked and met some great people, attended informational seminars, and made some good buys that will add to your inventory.
At the first of the year you contacted your state to see what new updates there may be in the regulations that you may have to follow, and you updated your current insurance policy. Next you trained your staff whether you are an indoor family fun center with a full and part time staff, or a one man (woman) show, with your nephew working for you on the weekends. Looks like you are ready for business for the spring and summer rental seasons. Right? Well almost. Many businesses work really hard in the off months or slower season, to get the cobwebs out of their equipment, but they don’t realize that there is dust building on their marketing program, if there is one. With as much time and money spent on the administrative things that make our businesses run, we should take care to put as much if not more time and energy into a well designed marketing campaign. The truth is that real marketing is 24/7, 365 days a year if you think about it. This does not just mean the yellow page ad that you first put out when you got started, or the magnetic banner that you put on your truck as you are driving around town. Real marketing is knowing when and how to promote yourself and your business at any given moment when the opportunity presents itself, and looking for ways to create that opportunity. You should be thinking about marketing your company even when talking to people at the check out counter of your favorite grocery store. We asked many of our customers to give us some of their marketing tips, and things that they do on a continual basis to keep their company in the forefront of any party or event planning decision makers mind. Here are just a few of them and how they work. Tim Breen of Austin, Texas has established a working relationship with his local Theaters. He has licensed and unlicensed inflatables in his inventory. Last June when the new Batman movie was released he approached them and offered to put up his 15’ x 15’ Batman club in the lobby of the theater, with an attendant. He was able to work out a cross promotion where in exchange for free entertainment in the lobby of the theater he received a moving advertisement at the bottom of the movie screen prior to the start of the promotions for upcoming movies. Janie Compton of Myrtle Beach, North Carolina, joins networking groups that meet at local coffee houses. While many people that attend are looking for full time jobs, many companies send their own employees looking for recruits, leads, and even more information on other networking groups. She has even found part time help, because she knows these people are hungry for work. But she is also able to get information on companies that host quarterly community outreach programs, or may have job fair or corporate events. All of these activities may require affordable entertainment for the patron that has brought their kids. Advertising in local community newsletters and papers works much better for Lance and Mary Bainbridge of Ft Lauderdale, Florida. They feel that their ad or special that would run in the Miami Herald would just get lost with the other rental companies, so they go the extra mile and put them in very local distribution outlets that may only be a fraction of the coverage, but also the fraction of the cost. Their return is much higher with this approach and would work better for rental owners that live in larger cities. How about new housing complexes? Builders are like car dealerships, as Ainsworth Romans of Atlanta, Georgia found out. The dealer wants to promote a family oriented product, but dealing with a crying child may mean that they have all but lost the sale. The parents’ attention is now focused on the child and they may have to leave to attend to the child. The dealer or builder knows that it give the parents time to think about why “not” to buy as opposed to creating a sale. Introducing yourself to the car dealer and or builder may provide a very affordable way for you to market your company within your community. See if they will let you set up on the weekends and pass out fliers and business cards to everyone that comes in. They will also have a huge sales from time to time with other types of promos and giveaways. You will then be positioned to offer even more equipment as you build your inventory. As you can see the list is endless. It just takes being creative to find that niche that works best for you. But there are also the other types of marketing as well that can help out. Little things that you may or not be doing right now can jump start your plan. I am a big fan of refrigerator magnets. Even if the customer has 50 of them already there is always room for more, and instead of hunting around for a business card, or an old post it note, they are much more readily found. How about a postcard to your customer base with any new inventory items, specials, or services that you now offer? Then follow up a month before the child’s birthday, reminding them that you are there and waiting to plan their party. You did remember to gather all of the children’s information for each birthday party that you supplied in the previous year, right??? Are you a member of the Chamber of Commerce? This is also another source of community involvement that can be very affordable for a yearly rate, and be active when the Chamber does it’s community events. It is also a good sign that you are a reputable company. Find out what charities are having 5K runs, fund raisers, and other events. Are there spring and fall art festivals that you may not have thought of? All it takes is to be active in what is going on within your community, find the person that will handle the event and then, and this is VERY IMPORTANT, present yourself in a professional manner with a game plan, and be prepared to barter, negotiate, and offer your help. Seeing a need before an event planner, or host does will often just get you in the door before they realized that there was something lacking. Have a great marketing year! Contact NINJA JUMP INC. 3221 San Fernando Road Los Angeles, CA 90065 Toll Free : 1-800-888-8148 Direct : 1-323-255-5418 Fax : 1-323-255-1312 E-Mail: info@ninjajump.com and visit the website @http://www.ninjajump.com |
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