Your businesses or initiative might not be backed by deep pockets. But don’t let that discourage you. If you are willing to invest time, energy and imagination you can still reach your goals.

Though I’ve usually been blessed with adequate funding there have been a few occasions where I needed to get something off the ground with a McDonald’s budget. It’s on these occasions where I’ve turned to Jay Conrad Levinson and his series of books on guerilla marketing. Continue Reading…

TV Commercials are the ultimate art form of the marketing universe. In 30 seconds tell your story. Make an unwilling audience pay attention and want to watch.

Utilize music and sound effects. Feature Hollywood imagery. Show beautiful people in fascinating places saying interesting things. Make it memorable…and drive your message straight to the heart.

So how does one do it? Continue Reading…

Cheap stock photos have their place, but are ultimately limited by their generic nature. Commissioned professional photographs, by comparison, enhance your company’s image and greatly improve your marketing communication. Custom photographs build emotional stories, drawing your audience close—where they hear and remember.

Alaska is home to numerous professional photographers that deliver imagery that is real, vivid and gritty. They capture photographs that not only resonate with Alaskans but also appeal to a global audience that is intrigued with our state. One such elite local photographer is Mark Meyer. Continue Reading…

Marketing through “snail mail” can still be an effective option even in this digital era. But squandering the money and effort is easy without knowing some tricks. Most marketing mail is never read at all or may only receive a second or two of attention. For a winning effort consider the following techniques. Continue Reading…

The term “deadline” has an interesting and somewhat…sobering…history. In Civil War times a deadline was a line marked around a military prison beyond which a prisoner may not go, risking being shot if he did! Since makeshift detention facilities lacked adequate gates, security was achieved through a rule and a rifle.

Oh, and did you know that “OK” is a term used after a military battle that means “zero killed”? These two terms date back to American Civil War time. Continue Reading…

Don’t build a house without a blueprint! It is an inviolable marketing commandment: lock down that PSP from every angle before you move deeper into your marketing campaign. PSP? That’s your Principal Selling Position.

Your PSP should be defined from your prospect’s point of view. How, in a nutshell, do you want your prospect to regard you and your offerings——in a single sentence? What is your most attractive benefit? Continue Reading…

It’s that time again! We hit the gym and start the diet. It’s also a good time to hone skills and catch up with the latest marketing trends. With that in mind here is a reading list to bring fitness to those 2010 marketing muscles. Continue Reading…