Tom,
I really appreciate what you are doing and the style in which you present. I'm a one man band with 12 loyal clients
who have stuck with me since 1985. I've done everything from using high school cheerleaders to having kindergardeners draw pics of "How I spent my summer", with a GMC pickup in it, of course, to be posted in the dealerships windows. Every class won a pizza party and the kids are over 18 now and some still remember. I make TV stories (little baton twirler throwing her baton with the sound of crashing glass and a look of cute horror on her face -"When you hear that crash, think Bill's Glass!". I make radio commercials, billboards, websites, Kid ID Kits, give away $1,000. gift certificates for the winner of a 25 word, or less, e-mail (or postcard) of "Why I have the best Mom in the World" I do newspaper ads with cartoons to bring in folks with diabetes to participate in drug studies. When I say I make, I mean I have this all made. When new clients ask me what I do, I tell them that I am like the hub at the center of a wheel and I connect all these spokes that keep the wheel rolling. They seem to buy this, usually. I do have a communication plan to diagnose where their business is and where they want to go. We develop an annual budget and all the request for yearbook ads, Special Olympics, etc. come to me. Tom, it's especially rewarding and lately heartwrenching to have these people open their books to me. They share the bottom line and I know exactly how many Teppenyaki dinners Shoji's ( For Dinner & a Show!) has to sell to make back a $5,000. TV buy.
But here we are now - I'm in my home office writing you, my wife is in the front room with her laptop reading the newspaper, watching GMA while talking to her Dad on the phone and my 14 year old son is in his room playing Metal Gear Solid 2 on Bluetooth with some other kids around the world. And I'msupposed to come up with a concept for a scuba shop client which will convince a 55 year old woman to get in the ocean with her husband.
Bottom line is that I really appreciate your insights, tips, ramblin's whatever cause I have no idea what a Gravatar icon is but I bet I'll find out. Just because I'm stubborn I guess. I'm in beautiful southern Oregon in a 300,000 population fruitbowl so what I'm doing now will work till I get out of the biz but it's all changing so fast even my spokes can't keep up. Once I get my kid into college, my wife and I are going to travel around in a Westfalia ( she calls it a Westfailure!) and sell refrigerator mounted dry erase boards with ads around the edge and a 2 year calendar at the bottom while we see the country. Anyway, to sum up, are you still there? I appreciate what you doing and wish you the best of luck from a guy who's not Weiden & Kennedy but just slugging away trying to keep his clients and friends in the black. My favorite reads lately (besides yourself) are Shel Horowitz and Bob Garfield. Oh, and I did register a .mobi domain so don't give up on me. Gotta go find out what the heck a Gravatar icon is! Best wishes, Gus
Gus...
Still here and read every word of it. ;)
Tom
Tom,
I really appreciate what you are doing and the style in which you present. I'm a one man band with 12 loyal clients
who have stuck with me since 1985. I've done everything from using high school cheerleaders to having kindergardeners draw pics of "How I spent my summer", with a GMC pickup in it, of course, to be posted in the dealerships windows. Every class won a pizza party and the kids are over 18 now and some still remember. I make TV stories (little baton twirler throwing her baton with the sound of crashing glass and a look of cute horror on her face -"When you hear that crash, think Bill's Glass!". I make radio commercials, billboards, websites, Kid ID Kits, give away $1,000. gift certificates for the winner of a 25 word, or less, e-mail (or postcard) of "Why I have the best Mom in the World" I do newspaper ads with cartoons to bring in folks with diabetes to participate in drug studies. When I say I make, I mean I have this all made. When new clients ask me what I do, I tell them that I am like the hub at the center of a wheel and I connect all these spokes that keep the wheel rolling. They seem to buy this, usually. I do have a communication plan to diagnose where their business is and where they want to go. We develop an annual budget and all the request for yearbook ads, Special Olympics, etc. come to me. Tom, it's especially rewarding and lately heartwrenching to have these people open their books to me. They share the bottom line and I know exactly how many Teppenyaki dinners Shoji's ( For Dinner & a Show!) has to sell to make back a $5,000. TV buy.
But here we are now - I'm in my home office writing you, my wife is in the front room with her laptop reading the newspaper, watching GMA while talking to her Dad on the phone and my 14 year old son is in his room playing Metal Gear Solid 2 on Bluetooth with some other kids around the world. And I'msupposed to come up with a concept for a scuba shop client which will convince a 55 year old woman to get in the ocean with her husband.
Bottom line is that I really appreciate your insights, tips, ramblin's whatever cause I have no idea what a Gravatar icon is but I bet I'll find out. Just because I'm stubborn I guess. I'm in beautiful southern Oregon in a 300,000 population fruitbowl so what I'm doing now will work till I get out of the biz but it's all changing so fast even my spokes can't keep up. Once I get my kid into college, my wife and I are going to travel around in a Westfalia ( she calls it a Westfailure!) and sell refrigerator mounted dry erase boards with ads around the edge and a 2 year calendar at the bottom while we see the country. Anyway, to sum up, are you still there? I appreciate what you doing and wish you the best of luck from a guy who's not Weiden & Kennedy but just slugging away trying to keep his clients and friends in the black. My favorite reads lately (besides yourself) are Shel Horowitz and Bob Garfield. Oh, and I did register a .mobi domain so don't give up on me. Gotta go find out what the heck a Gravatar icon is! Best wishes, Gus