Never a Lack of Ideas

It Doesn’t Have to Be Boring (Featuring an Exciting Announcement)

2013-06-18T06:19:00.000-07:00

Let's spice up some things that are traditionally boring: LinkedIn requests and out-of-office emails. Why? Because doing so surprises and delights people, and it raises your cool factor (trust me, I'm an expert in cool factor...).

LinkedIn Requests
Every time you request to connect with someone on LinkedIn, the same default email will be sent on your behalf if you don't change it: "I'd like to add you to my professional network." Boring!

Why not spend five seconds and change it up? Here are three that I've sent recently to friends of mine:

"Oh please, oh please, oh please!"
"Let's be frienemies" — I sent this to a friend who is going to work at Yahoo.
"Pretty pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease!!!!"

Each one of these emails elicited a response email to me, with a little joke in return. When was the last time someone replied to your default LinkedIn email?

Out-of-Office Emails
"I'm currently out of the office and will return on XYZ date. Please contact so-and-so if this is an emergency." Sound familiar? What a bore, but we all do it. Here are two out of office emails I've used in the past. Use them as inspiration for yours. I always receive a few great responses when using these:

"I wish I could write you back right now, but I'm in space! No, not really, but recently an Android went to space and we caught its journey on YouTube. Check it out. I'm actually out of the office until Friday and I'll write you back when I return."
"Did you know that it took 14 years to build Mount Rushmore? You did? Great! Try some awesome trivia questions at www.agoogleaday.com. That ought to keep you busy until I return from being out of the office. I'll be back on XYZ date and I'll get back to you then. Thanks for your message."

An Exciting Announcement
When my wife was pregnant with our first child, I didn't want to know the baby's sex ahead of time because I thought that great surprise should come when the baby was born. Well, my wife is pregnant again — that's the big announcement! For baby #2, we ordered a reveal cake and when we cut into it, the inside of the cake was blue (that's us cutting the cake in the picture). We're having another boy! The reveal party was a great way to spice up the traditional way of finding out the sex of the baby at the ultrasound appointment.

Add This To Your To-Do List
Take a good look at your business practices and you are sure to find something you do every day that's a little boring. Spice it up! Look at what's on the receipts you issue. Can you add a knock knock joke? Listen to your voicemail message. Can you sing a little song instead? It doesn't take a lot of time to make something mundane into something a little out of the ordinary. And please, if you're going to send me a LinkedIn request, don't send me the generic email. It's just so boring.

There's never a lack of ideas.

The Best Church Youth Group Fundraiser Ever

2013-05-22T13:35:00.002-07:00

Get Flocked
My twin sister Nichole leads student ministries at the church we attend. Each summer, she leads a group of high school students on a mission trip. To raise money for the trip each year, she implements the greatest fundraising idea ever:

Every night during the month of May, our church's group of high school students drives to someone's house (it's usually a church member's) and plant 20 pink, plastic flamingos in their yard. This is called "getting flocked." In order to have the flamingos removed the next day, the owner of the house must donate at least $20 to the youth group. That's pretty awesome by itself, but there are fantastically fun twists:

Church members can purchase flamingo insurance for $10 to prevent their house from being flocked.
Church members can pay $10 to request the flocking of an uninsured house.
An uninsured house can be flocked more than once during the month.

There's something for everyone in this fundraiser: some people love being flocked and look forward to the surprise of waking up to a yard full of flamingos every year. My two-year-old son loves seeing the flamingos in our yard (see the picture of he and my sister on the right, taken in my front yard after a flocking). I've been flocked twice this year and both times have been quite fun because of my son's reaction.

On the other hand, people who really don't want flamingos in their yard can make a small donation to the youth group and avoid being flocked. Further, the flamingos in a yard spark conversations among neighbors who ask why they're there, giving church members an opportunity to talk about their youth group's great service trip.

Do things ever go wrong? Of course. Each year, the high schoolers accidentally flock the wrong house at least once, but it's almost always resolved peacefully. One time, the wrong recipient of a flocking kept the flamingos hostage for a few days because he was so upset, but my sister was eventually able to talk him into giving them back ("hey, it's for the kids!").

Add This To Your To-Do List
The flamingo fundraiser generates tons of donations for our youth group and the whole church gets into it every year. People post pictures of their flocked house to our church's Facebook page and it gives people something to laugh about before and after church. If you're trying to raise donations for a group at your organization, consider buying a flock of flamingos and setting them free. It will lift spirits, get people talking, and generate a lot of money for your group.

There's never a lack of ideas.

My TEDx Talk: Hey Marketers, Get Your Priorities Straight

2013-05-08T07:30:00.000-07:00

18 Minutes of Fame
On April 12, 2013, I fulfilled a longtime goal: I gave a TEDx talk. I was honored to be one of six speakers at TEDx UofI Chicago. Everyone at the event was a pleasure to work with.

It would be very difficult to add up all of the hours that went into preparing for my short, 18-minute talk. I think I practiced it enough to remember large parts of it for the rest of my life. I tried to bring my passion for the subject to the stage — along with a little humor and a little know-how. There's always room for improvement, but I think I did pretty well. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

I must admit that I had so much fun doing the talk that I just may have to try and do another one someday. I guess we'll have to see if I have any more ideas worth spreading in the future.

Add This To Your To-Do List
Enjoy my talk! And let me know what you thought of it.

There's never a lack of ideas.

Show Your Support for the #MarketingPriorities Movement with This Free Button

2013-05-05T19:55:00.000-07:00

Sharing is Caring
To thank those of you who have taken time to read my new book and share it with a friend, I'd like to send you a nifty button I've created. Check it out there on the right, worn by one of the people to whom I dedicated the book.

I'll send you a free button if you do all of the following:

Read my book. (Remember, there's a completely free pdf available.)
Share my book with someone. I would love if you'd write a review of it, but you can also simply tell a friend about it or share it via social media. (If you share it on social media, please include #marketingpriorities.)
Let me know that you did the first two things and where I should send the button. Then, sport it on your clothes or bag everywhere you go. If you take a picture of yourself wearing it and send it to me, I'll upload it to a little photo gallery for everyone to see.

I'm trying to start a movement in which organizations no longer invest time and money into marketing communication tactics that won't work. Thank you for your support!

There's never a lack of ideas.

Two Holes-In-One

2013-04-26T06:42:00.000-07:00

What a Week
While playing golf in Texas a few weeks ago, my uncle made two holes-in-one within four days. Incredible! (That's him on the right after the first one.) According to Callaway, there are fewer than 150 people who have done this while using Callaway golf balls, like my uncle was. And that includes professional golfers. (My uncle is not a professional golfer.)

That got me thinking:

Have you ever seen an ad for golf equipment? Every single one of them features a pro golfer. Every single one. Why doesn't one golf manufacturer take a different approach and focus on everyday golfers with incredible stories like my uncle? That's much more appealing and approachable to the vast majority of people who play the game. Sure, there's something to be said for inspiring amateur golfers by showing them that professionals play with their equipment — and I'm not saying golf manufacturers should ditch their professional player sponsorships. I'm just saying that the stories amateurs tell are much more compelling for the majority of golfers, and I'd love to see one major golf equipment manufacturer tell those stories. I'm looking at you, Callaway.

Add This To Your To-Do List
Celebrity endorsements have proven to be very valuable. In fact as a sponsor, Tiger Woods is often single-handedly credited for building Nike into a highly successful competitor in the golf equipment industry. But it's important to tell the incredible stories of regular customers, too. Celebrities give us something to aspire to, but amazing everyday stories give us something to relate to. For big brands, it's often important to feature both. Are you collecting the amazing stories of your customers? Are you featuring those stories in shareable ways? If not, why not start now? You never know what can happen in just four days.

There's never a lack of ideas.

Campaign Critique: Lincoln Turns to Train Riders for Tweets

2013-04-14T20:20:00.001-07:00

Train Station Take Over
In March, the Lincoln Motor Company took over nearly all the billboards in Chicago's Union Station. The ads (examples seen on the right) all talked about "firsts" and invited people to share their firsts on Twitter by using #LincolnFirsts.

Now, I try not to use this blog as a way to critique marketing campaigns very often because as an observer, I don't know what Lincoln's goals were for this campaign, nor do I know how it performed against those goals. But I can make some educated guesses and I've come to the conclusion that this campaign was an example of marketing priorities gone wrong. Just look at some of the responses Lincoln received on Twitter. I assume Lincoln was hoping for better responses than these actual Tweets:

The first time I saw this ad at Union Station I wanted to punch it.
The first time I stole a car.
The first time I pee'd in a bottle in a car
The first time I went to a concert it was PDiddy. A rocker girl lost in a sea pot and bandanas.
The #lincolnfirsts campaign is such a waste of money. May as well purchase billboards that declare, "We don't understand social media!"

Trains and Automobiles?
Next, think about where these ads were placed: in Chicago's busiest train station. The people who pass through Union Station every day take the train from the suburbs to downtown and vice versa. See anything wrong with that?

They take the train every day.

These people (I'm one of them) likely drive infrequently. I assume Lincoln was attracted to this audience because it comprises wealthy professionals who may be likely to consider a car a status symbol. I get that. But there are plenty of other ways to reach the same types of people who actually drive to work every day and will use their car much more than train commuters.

#MarketingPriorities
In my new book, I write how companies big and small need to engage customers in one community really well before moving on to other communities. Companies do not have to have a Facebook page and a Twitter account and a Google+ page and a Pinterest account. They just need to start with one way to engage their customers in a community and then move on to other platforms.

Lincoln fell in love with the idea of reaching customers on Twitter and didn't think through how to best engage their target markets on the platform. They fell in love with the platform because it's hot right now. But they didn't think about merging that hot platform with their desire to reach their target market. If they had stopped to think about the best way to engage their target market, I think they would have chosen different tactics than placing billboards in a train station.

I love you, Lincoln, but I didn't love this campaign.

There's never a lack of ideas.

Join Me at TEDx

2013-04-07T21:13:00.000-07:00

An Idea Worth Spreading
I'm incredibly excited to be presenting at TEDx at the University of Illinois at Chicago this Friday evening — April 12th. I'll be discussing a few of the frameworks outlined in my new book, Hey Marketers, Get Your Priorities Straight. I'm speaking at 7:20 pm, which is late in the evening, so I'll do my best to keep it lively and entertaining. TEDx is for ideas worth spreading, and I hope you'll be inspired by my talk.

Tickets for the event are sold out, but you can tune in via the event livestream. But don't worry if you can't view the event live — I'll post a link to the video of my talk after the event organizers post it.

See you on the stage!

Hey Marketers, Get Your Priorities Straight

2013-03-27T18:46:00.000-07:00

I'm thrilled to announce that my first book is now available in paperback and eBook! Here's where you can get it:

Amazon.com – to get a paperback copy
Search an eBook store for the book (Kindle, Apple iBook, Nook, Google Play, and Vook)
Free PDF (based on the print version)

I invite you to consider leaving a review of the book wherever you acquired it. If you downloaded the PDF, I ask that you please write a review of it on Amazon — it's the least you can do for a free book, right?!

#marketingpriorities
Join the conversation about setting marketing priorities by using #marketingpriorities on your preferred social networks. Share the marketing tactics you’ve prioritized and those you’ve decided to skip.

Independent Reviews
If you're looking to give a review of the book on your own media channel, here are the basics of my book; use any of these resources as you'd like:

Title: Hey Marketers, Get Your Priorities Straight
Subtitle: Setting Marketing Communication Priorities at Startups, Small Businesses, and Non-Profits
Written by: Nick Scarpino
Foreword by: Avinash Kaushik
Self-Published by: Little Shoe Publishing
Printed by: CreateSpace, a DBA of On-Demand Publishing, LLC
List Prices: $12.99 (paperback) and $2.99 eBook
Paperback ISBN-13: 978-0-9891334-1-1
Paperback ISBN-10: 098913340
EBook ISBN-13: 978-0-9891334-1-8

Book Description
For startups, small businesses, and non-profit organizations, the idea of investing time and money into marketing communications can be very intimidating. Deciding between an investment in the next rising social media site, attending an industry trade show, or developing a direct mail program is daunting for businesses with marketing staffs of twenty people. Doing it with just a handful or fewer may seem nearly impossible, as the increasing number of available opportunities can be overwhelming.

This book will help you set priorities for your marketing communication investments. It walks through an easy-to-understand visual framework by which all marketing communication tactics should be considered; so as new marketing options come and go, you’ll know which ones to embrace and which ones to skip. The book also outlines the five must-have tactics all marketers must do before anything else. Real-life examples are everywhere in this book, making it easy to see exactly how the entire process works.

Author Biography
Nick Scarpino works at Google, where he uses data to uncover consumer insights for marketers. In his spare time, he writes a popular marketing blog called Never a Lack of Ideas. Over the last 10+ years, Nick has had the opportunity to work in marketing at startups, small businesses, and non-profit organizations. Nick’s marketing work has earned numerous national awards for excellence.

Nick has a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing from the University of Notre Dame and a Master’s Degree in Integrated Marketing Communications from Northwestern University.

Nick is passionate about helping companies of all sizes develop engaging marketing communication programs. Nick is also the creator, designer, and publisher of the popular family card game, What’s Wild?!.

Happy Fourth Birthday to My Blog

2013-03-06T08:00:00.000-08:00

Four More Years!
I can't believe I've kept this blog going for four years. Thank you to all who have supported me, shared my writing, and contributed ideas throughout these years. I couldn't have done this without you.

Taking it to the Next Level
I'm excited to announce that I've taken my writing to the next level and written a book. It is called, Hey Marketers, Get Your Priorities Straight. I'll be self-publishing the book within the next few weeks, so be sure to check it out when it comes out.

I'll be giving a TEDx talk at UIC on April 12th in which I outline a few of the basic ideas of my book. There will be a live stream of the event online and I'll post a link to it and the recorded video once I have them.

This Year's Posts
Looking back over the past year, I had five favorite posts. In case you missed them, here they are:

Only Old People Choose Butter Pecan Ice Cream
Diapers May Provide a New Market for Redbox
Lessons I've Learned from Starting My Own Business: Part 1 | Part 2
Even a Coffee Filter Can Benefit from Good Marketing

Add This To Your To-Do List
Enjoy my favorite five posts!

There's never a lack of ideas.

30-Day Cardio Challenge: Great Content Marketing (Part 3 of 3)

2013-02-27T20:52:00.001-08:00

Great Content: Part Three
Because great marketers know that one key to building lasting customer relationships is providing them with compelling content on a regular basis, I'm writing a three-part series on some of the best online content creators I've seen. In my first post I wrote about the wonderfully talented Amanda Blake and her daily postcard illustrations. In my second post, I wrote about Jeanne Haegele and her inspiring "Making Made" daily blog. In this final post, I'll introduce you to Ray Grayson, who is helping people all around the world lead healthier lives.

Ray Grayson: "Mr. Shut Up and Train"
Ray Grayson is a fitness trainer at Athletes and Entertainers in Motion (AEIM) in Atlanta, Georgia. He has a great list of celebrity and non-celebrity clients looking to improve their health and fitness. But one man can only reach so many people within his Atlanta facility. So Ray decided to extend his reach (and his personal brand) beyond the walls of his gym in Atlanta and take his message to the rest of the world with the 30-Day Cardio Challenge.

For 30 days in a row, Ray provides a free fitness challenge, healthy recipe, or motivational message to anyone who has signed up to take the challenge. Signing up for the 30-Day Cardio Challenge provides a great sense of community for people trying to get fit. Ray does the challenge to help get people in shape but it also helps build his business by building his personal brand. Ray is setting himself up perfectly to be the next big name in American fitness. He has built his "Shut Up and Train" mantra into a fitness lifestyle reaching thousands of people around the world via things like the 30-Day Cardio Challenge. I see a future in which Ray is mentioned in the same breath as Jillian Michaels, Tony Horton, and Shaun T.

Add This to Your To-Do List
If you want to build a brand that extends outside of your business's physical location, provide people with amazing content and they will begin seeing your brand as a helpful resource. Building a group of dedicated, passionate supporters is no easy task, but by providing great content, you'll be well on your way to doing just that.

There's never a lack of ideas.

PS Thanks, Ray, for dedicating yourself to getting the world in shape and I wish you all the best.

Making Made: Great Content Marketing (Part 2 of 3)

2013-02-05T06:05:00.000-08:00

Great Content: Part Deux
Because great marketers know that one key to building lasting customer relationships is providing them with compelling content on a regular basis, I've decided to write a three-part series on some of the best online content creators I've seen. In my first post I wrote about the incredibly talented Amanda Blake and her daily postcard illustrations. In this post, I'd like to introduce you to another extremely talented content creator: Jeanne Haegele.

Jeanne Haegele: Queen of Making Things
Every day for more than a year, Jeanne Haegele made something and blogged about it. She created doodles, took photos, and cooked new recipes. She also made craft projects, wrote songs, made videos, and anything else she could dream up. She named her blog "Making Made" and simply made things for a year. My favorite project of hers was done on day 180 in which she made a cute little flipbook. She made an amazing video of all of her projects that is quite inspiring and shows the vast array of projects she took on within the year.

Jeanne took on this project to challenge herself to do new things. Her entire body of work is incredible. She produced the type of content marketers would pay large sums of money to use on their websites and in their e-newsletters. I think a number of lifestyle magazines would fall over themselves to partner with Jeanne. Imagine Jeanne's work featured regularly in Oprah's magazine, on Better Homes and Garden's website, or in Self Magazine. Her projects would bring a sense of youth, energy, and something new to these print and online publications.

Add This to Your To-Do List
If you want to keep customers coming back to your website or store; or keep customers opening your emails on a regular basis, consider partnering with a content creator like Jeanne. Do a few Google searches for the type of content you'd like to sponsor and you're sure to find a talented creator like Jeanne out there. Then, contact the creator and see if she would be interested in partnering with your business.

There's never a lack of ideas.

PS Thanks, Jeanne, for dedicating yourself to such an awesome project and taking us along for the ride!

The 365 Postcard Project: Great Content Marketing (Part 1 of 3)

2013-01-30T21:34:00.000-08:00

Content, Content, Everywhere

Great marketers know that one key to building lasting customer relationships is providing them with compelling content on a regular basis. Fresh, unique content will keep your company on the top of customers' minds. And with the proliferation of blogs and other derivations like Tumblr and Instagram, there has never been a better time for marketers to find and partner with amazing content creators.

I thought it would be fun to write about some of my favorite online content producers in a three-part series. I'll even brainstorm some ideas on the types of marketers that could partner with these three content creators to provide value to their customers. Let's begin...

Amanda Blake: Postcard Queen

Amanda Blake is a fantastic artist who happens to love handmade cards. In fact, she's always created her own cards -- store-bought ones just don't cut it for her. And she loves the excitement that comes with receiving a postcard in the mail. (So do I!) Every day for a year, she hand-drew a postcard, scanned it into her computer, and posted the image of her postcard on her blog.

Anyone reading Amanda's blog can request a postcard from her for free. All that she asks is that the recipient send her a postcard in return. I have had the pleasure of receiving two cards from Amanda. Her most recent one sits on my desk at work. Amanda has sent postcards to people around the world.

Amanda's work is incredible. Just think of all the businesses that could sponsor her work and bring her art into the email inboxes of millions and the front pages of their websites daily:

The US Postal Service
Blick Art Supply
Paper stores like Papyrus and Paper Source

Add This to Your To-Do List

If you want to keep customers coming back to your website or store on a regular basis, consider partnering with a content creator like Amanda. Do a few Google searches for the type of content you'd like to sponsor and you're sure to find a talented creator like Amanda out there. Then, contact the creator and see if she would be interested in partnering with your business.

There's never a lack of ideas.

PS Special thanks to Amanda Blake for providing readers like me with such amazing experiences!

Give a Dog Some Water

2012-12-30T14:10:00.002-08:00

All Dogs Go to Water Bowls
I was walking on a sidewalk in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood when I came across what you see pictured on the right: a dog-walking stop with a bowl of water for people's dogs. What a great idea. In a neighborhood filled with dog lovers, a restaurant saw an opportunity to extend some friendliness to the community in a unique way. I imagine that on nice days, several dogs take advantage of this rest stop and over time, dogs may even lead their owners to the front of this restaurant while on a walk.

Does this little gesture lead to immediate sales at the restaurant? Probably not. But it lets the community know that the restaurant employees care about their dogs and therefore the people in the community. It's a little touch that goes a long way.

Add This To Your To-Do List
Are there easy ways for you to engage your local community? If you have a physical location, there are likely plenty of opportunities — sponsor a youth baseball team, offer discounts to school district employees, or simply hang up some local high school paraphernalia like Applebee's does. Engaging the local community is always a great way to build a great reputation, and marketing is so much easier when you've got a great reputation.

There's Never a Lack of Ideas

Diapers May Provide a New Market for Redbox

2012-11-29T20:16:00.000-08:00

Chips, Dip, and Redbox
Yesterday, I attended a marketing presentation by Mark Achler, Senior Vice President of New Business at Redbox. Mark discussed how Redbox has formed great partnerships with consumer packaged goods companies. He showed an example in which Tostitos had set up large displays in grocery store aisles. If consumers purchased three Tostitos products, they'd get a free night's movie rental from Redbox. This partnership increased sales for both Tostitos and Redbox, so it was a win-win situation.

Diapers, Wipes, and Redbox
When Mark showed a graphic of all the brands Redbox has partnered with on similar deals, I thought there was one big missed opportunity — diapers. As I've come to learn, new parents are very much tied down to their homes at night. Once a baby goes to bed, parents are left awake in the house with a few hours of "free time." As new parents, my wife and I have spent several nights watching movies rented from Redbox. We have never been big movie watchers, but Redbox offers us an evening of entertainment for only $1.20 and we both don't have to leave the house.

I think Redbox should partner with a diaper brand and offer a similar deal to the Tostitos offer: buy a few packages of diapers or wipes and receive a free night's movie rental. This offer could bring a new set of customers to both the diaper brand and Redbox. That's they type of win-win situation Redbox loves.

Add This To Your To-Do List
In the idea I've outlined here, new parents are a "trigger market" for Redbox. Trigger markets are created when people go through big changes in their lives and are therefore "triggered" into being in your target market. If you can identify the triggers that make your products, services, or causes suddenly relevant to a group of people, you'll identify a great target market for your products.

What are your trigger markets? What life changes suddenly put people into your target market.

There's Never a Lack of Ideas

Where are the doomsday ads?

2012-11-19T19:53:00.001-08:00

Mayan Predictions
According to the ancient Mayan calendar, the world will end on December 21st, 2012. That's just days away! Where are all the doomsday ads? Think of the opportunities:

The world is ending in a month, so buy that Mercedes you've always wanted now.
You only have a few days left; take that Apple Vacation you've always dreamed of.
Eat like there's no tomorrow — because there might not be! Join us at Red Lobster for all you can eat lobster and steak.
Buy a Tiffany's ring and propose to your girlfriend. Don't experience the end of the world alone!

The biggest opportunity for doomsday marketing is for non-profit organizations trying to attract donations. They can ask for all your money before the end of the world — do a good deed before we're all gone!

Headline Marketing
I call this type of marketing communication that uses a current event in the message, "headline marketing." There are two major benefits to using headline marketing:

You can get free publicity. Often times, by attaching your brand to stories in the headlines, you can earn a few free stories in the news.
These types of brands are cool and flexible. You have to be nimble and fast to respond in order to engage in this type of marketing. In general, customers like brands that are quick and hip.

Add This To Your To-Do List
Headline marketing can be pretty fun. When done properly, a brand can really gain some great publicity and improve its image. What type of offer would you make in a doomsday scenario? The possibilities are endless and I'd love to hear your ideas.

There's Never a Lack of Ideas

The Best Brands in the United States — Part 3

2012-10-31T00:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween
For the past two Halloweens, I have presented my lists of the top ten and next ten brands in the United States. I would remove Angry Birds from the list (what a difference a year makes!), but I'd keep everything else the same. My previous posts describe my criteria for these lists.

So, in my final installment of this series, I give you my list of top brands #21-25:

21. Corona — There are thousands of brands of beer, but the one that stands out most makes us think of sitting on a beach every time a lime is placed inside one.

22. Tostitos — Go ahead, try to name another brand of tortilla chip. There's a party in every bag.

23. Christian Louboutin — There's only one brand of shoe recognizable simply by its red sole. Louboutin even has a trademark on the red sole in the US.

24. Tiffany & Co. — Every woman wants a gift in the little blue box, and every marketer marvels at the margins Tiffany brings in compared to its competitors.

25. LinkedIn — This website has quickly become the standard resume bearer for workers in the 21st century and is the first stop for everyone about to meet with someone for the first time.

Add This To Your To-Do List
What did I forget? Where am I wrong? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

There's never a lack of ideas.

Comment Commander un Hamburger en France

2012-10-29T06:08:00.001-07:00

French Not Required
Right next to the French Metro stop at the Palace of Versailles is a McDonald's that gets tons of traffic from visitors around the world. We stopped in and I loved what I saw: six self-serve kiosks at which customers can place their orders in any one of five different languages. That's brilliant.

Managers at the restaurant have clearly identified that customers in the restaurant come from all over the world, they may not speak French, and they may not be familiar with all of the items McDonald's offers in France. So they give customers the ability to take their time and read about menu items in their language of choice, place their order with a credit card, and then pick up their food when it's ready.

I love innovations in fast food, so I had to take a little video of us using the digital ordering system. I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I enjoyed filming it.

Add This to Your To-Do List
If McDonald's can innovate its ordering system in a cool way after selling hamburgers for more than 50 years, then so can your business. How will you innovate your product or the way it is ordered?

There's never a lack of ideas.

PS The title of this post means, "How to order a hamburger in France." But you already knew that because you used Google Translate.

3 More Lessons I’ve Learned from Starting My Own Business (Part 2 of 2)

2012-10-18T07:56:00.000-07:00

I'm Going Wild!
In my last post, I wrote about five lessons I learned from starting my own business, hoping someone might learn something from my experiences. In this post, I will describe what I learned about myself throughout this process — not to toot my own horn, but to hopefully inspire someone to start her own business as a result.

I became a good salesman. I have never given myself credit for being good at sales. But what I've learned is that sales is an extension of marketing — or the other way around, depending on who you ask. Good salespeople know the needs of their customers and deliver a solution that satisfies those needs. Identifying the customer was my first challenge: distributors, retail stores, and end consumers all have different goals and the sales pitch to each party is vastly different. As a one-man operation, I was forced to become a great salesman, and if you start your own company, you will be, too.
I perfected my elevator pitch. Related to #1 and I know it's cliché, but it's true: it's so important to be able to describe your product in 30 seconds or less. I have perfected the way I describe What's Wild?! in two ways: when I have the game in front of me and when I don't. The only way to do this perfectly is to practice thousands of times like I have. This important skill has helped me become a better marketer and has helped me in many other life situations.
I can do anything in marketing with excellence. This experience exposed me to every single type of marketing there is — and I had to figure out how to prioritize the most important ones. No, I didn't buy ad placements in Sports Illustrated, but I bought placements in gaming industry publications and the only difference between the two is scale. I can confidently say that I have enlisted nearly every marketing tactic there is. And I don't mean that I stayed up in the marketing strategy cloud while others did the work for me. I mean that I took a concept from start to finish — from strategy to execution — and was successful. I pushed the buttons in my Google Analytics account, I designed direct mail pieces, I built a website, I created a commercial, I created compelling email newsletters... the list goes on and on. Not many marketers can say that. And I can only say it because I started my own business.

Add This To Your To-Do List
I became a better marketer and salesman by starting my own business. I earned experience in ways only available to those who brave the ups and downs of entrepreneurship. If you have always wanted to start your business, I would absolutely recommend going for it. Hopefully the three reasons I've listed here will convince you it's worth the effort.

There's Never a Lack of Ideas.

5 Lessons I’ve Learned from Starting My Own Business (Part 1 of 2)

2012-09-17T06:28:00.001-07:00

A Walk on the Wild Side
In 2007, I designed a rummy-based card game called What’s Wild?!. I produced several thousand copies of the games and created a company to sell it. I did everything on my own— from testing different versions of the game, filing trademarks, outsourcing its production, generating PR, building a web presence, shooting a commercial, and selling to distributors, stores, and direct to customers. It was the biggest learning experience of my professional career — more so than any other job and any level of education I’ve had.

The past five years have had plenty of ups and downs and I thought I’d share some of the lessons I’ve learned along the way. My next post will be on things I now do really well because of this experience.

Focus on what you do best. I’m a marketer, through and through. I’m not a lawyer or an accountant. When I decided to produce and sell What’s Wild?! all by myself, I significantly underestimated the time I would spend on things other than building a brand and selling my game. I spent hours reading about legal and accounting matters to keep the business running. I was faced with countless questions that took me away from doing what I do best. I should have gotten help on these tasks and spent more of my energy doing what I do best.
Know your industry inside and out. I was very naïve early on and I thought I could just walk into a store, talk to its manager, and What’s Wild?! would be on the shelf that very day. I didn’t know how distribution worked. I should have done more research into the way every player in the industry makes money — from the wholesalers to the retailers (including online retailers like Amazon).
At a certain point, you have to go all-in. I was working full-time while trying to sell What’s Wild?! and that was very difficult. I spent every night and weekend working on this for about three years. And yet, it wasn’t enough. I could’ve scheduled so many more meetings with retailers and distributors if I was working on What’s Wild?! full time. I made the choice to not go all-in, and I took my game as far as I was able, given my time constraints. To take it to the next level, though, I would have had to leave my day job and fully commit to my game and company.
Have multiple exit strategies. When I launched my business, I figured I’d test the water with my first game, see how it went, and then make a decision on whether or not to produce additional game ideas I had. The exit strategy was to sell the game to another game company if I wanted to get out. And that’s exactly what I did — I sold our entire supply of games and the rights to reproduce it to one of the largest game manufacturers in Europe. But a few months later, the economy tanked and the company exercised its right to withdraw from the deal. That was my only exit strategy and I was left wondering what to do next. From the beginning, I should have planned multiple exit strategies.
Enjoy the wins and learn to move quickly past the rejections. I’ve heard so many no’s while selling What’s Wild?! that I couldn’t even begin to count them. Over time, I developed thick skin and learned whose opinions really matter. I learned to move on quickly from rejection and keep pressing forward.

For as many no’s I’ve heard, I’ve also had plenty of success — and I choose to remember those successes much more than the failures. I remember finding out from a distributor that our game was on the shelves at several zoo gift shops around the country, including the San Diego Zoo. And it was great fun to hear someone once tell me that his son liked the game so much he asked for his birthday party theme to center around my game. I also remember wearing a What’s Wild?! t-shirt while standing in a line at GenCon and a woman coming up to me, pointing at my shirt, and saying, “Have you played that game yet? My husband bought it for me a few days ago and I love it.”

Add This To Your To-Do List
Starting my own business has been one of the most challenging, rewarding, and humbling experiences of my life. If you have always wanted to start your business, I would absolutely recommend going for it. Hopefully some of the lessons I’ve learned along the way will help you focus your attention on what matters in your business and lead you to prosperity.

There’s Never a Lack of Ideas.

Even a Coffee Filter Can Benefit from Good Marketing

2012-09-08T20:26:00.002-07:00

Unfiltered
You might think that all coffee filters are the same. And, in fact, a quick look on a shelf in a supermarket or a search on Google will not reveal much differentiation between coffee filter brands. You might think there's no way to create a brand for a coffee filter for which people would pay a slightly higher price than an unbranded filter.

If you think that, you would be wrong.

I recently saw this list of 24 things you can do with a coffee filter besides make coffee. I learned a lot — coffee filters are great for cleaning windows because they are lint-free. Who knew? And I'll bet there are hundreds more uses for a coffee filter that I don't even know about.

A New Way of Thinking About Coffee Filters
What if one brand of coffee filter crafted its brand around the idea that there are limitless ways to use a coffee filter and encouraged its customers to share new ways to use their filters? Put great content like that into the hands of a gifted marketer and the marketing strategy practically falls into place. Soon, the brand is selling more coffee filters at a slightly higher price and everyone at the company is feeling good.

Think it's impossible? Then check out Duck brand duct tape. Its brand is built on all fun ways you can use duct tape. The company even sponsors a contest in which high school students make their prom attire out of Duck Tape and submit their photos to win college scholarships.

Add This To Your To-Do List
Have you given up trying to engage customers with your brand because you think your product can't be differentiated from its competitors? Trust me: if a brand of duct tape can create a strategic brand advantage through great marketing, so can your brand. Use this post as inspiration to dust off your brand, put it in the hands of a capable marketer, and let its greatness shine.

There's Never a Lack of Ideas.

Only Old People Choose Butter Pecan Ice Cream

2012-08-21T07:05:00.000-07:00

Adapt or Die
Those who know me best often hear me proclaim my theory that only old people choose to eat butter pecan ice cream. Oh sure, some younger people enjoy its taste, but nobody under the age of 55 ever goes to the grocery store or Baskin Robins and buys butter pecan ice cream. The flavor is simply outdated.

What does this mean for ice cream manufacturers? It means they should keep producing the flavor to satisfy current demand, but they had better create new flavors to adapt to changing tastes. That’s why they’ve created flavors like French silk and cookie dough — flavors that didn’t exist 15 years ago. In short, they adapt or die.

Add This To Your To-Do List
Have you taken a good look at your products or services lately? Are you still investing heavily in butter pecan ice cream and counting on it being your best seller for years to come? If so, you need to invest in innovation as quickly as possible. It could be as simple as offering new items on your menu, new services in your house cleaning business, or learning how to code in HTML 5 instead of Flash. Adapt or die — because only old people choose butter pecan ice cream.

There’s Never a Lack of Ideas.

When the Ducks Go Marching In

2012-07-19T20:52:00.000-07:00

Quack Attack
Peabody Hotels around the country have an awesome tradition: every day, each hotel features a duck parade in which a group of ducks waddle down a red carpet and into an indoor fountain, where they stay throughout the day. At the end of the day, the ducks waddle back across the red carpet and into their nighttime quarters. A Duck Master leads the ducks both ways. Crowds always gather to watch the parade and kids love it. My lovely wife recently witnessed the Peabody Duck March, as it's officially called, at the Orlando Peabody Hotel and shot the short video above.

Duck, Duck, Goose
The Duck March is a great example of a brand doing something fun and quirky over and over — so much, so, that the hotel is known for this tradition. It provides guests with something to tell their friends and if you look on YouTube you'll see hundreds of videos of it. The Internet didn't exist when the folks at the Peabody Memphis Hotel dreamed up the Duck March, but now it helps spread their message of family fun with prestige (after all, the Duck Master wears a nice suit).

Add This To Your To-Do List
What fun and quirky thing does your brand do well? Perry's Deli holds daily contests in which it awards free stale pastries to customers who answer trivia questions correctly. South Park Studios has several hilarious "pages not found" on their website. Brands need to have a genuine personality — nothing forced — and quirky traditions help define that personality. Make it genuine and make it fun. That's the key to get people talking about your brand.

There's Never a Lack of Ideas

A special thanks to my wonderful wife Monica, who routinely goes along with my sometimes silly requests in order for me to write posts for this blog.

Naperville Sun Blog Log: Never a Lack of Ideas

2012-07-16T19:35:00.001-07:00

My blog was featured in our local newspaper's Blog Log this month. I'd like to thank Jasmine Young for writing an excellent article and representing my blog well. Here's an excerpt of the article and a link to the entire story:

Blog Log: Never a Lack of Ideas, by Nicholas Scarpino
by Jasmine Young For The Sun | June 27, 2012

Since college, Nicholas Scarpino, 30, always had a passion for marketing. Now as a Senior Account Planner at Google's Chicago office, he constantly has a flurry of marketing ideas flooding his brain.

Three years ago, Scarpino decided to begin his blog "Never a Lack of Ideas" to pin down his thoughts.

"Blogging is a creative outlet for all the marketing ideas I have in my head that I can't directly apply to my job," Scarpino said.

"I blog about any really cool marketing strategies that I already see in existence ... and I also write about ideas that I came up with on my own."

Scarpino's most popular posts have been a three-part series about ways to land marketing internships.

In the series, Scarpino explains how to sell yourself for the job, use Facebook ads and write an "amazing" cover letter.

Continue reading the article.

There's never a lack of ideas.

Put the Name of the Product on Your Device: An Open Letter to All Mobile Device Manufacturers

2012-06-18T06:52:00.004-07:00

What's Your Name?

If you have purchased a phone or tablet other than the iPhone or iPad in the last five years, it's very likely that the name of your device is not indicated anywhere on it. The manufacturer is likely listed on the back of your device (Samsung, HTC, Motorola, etc.), but not the product name (Droid, Evo, Galaxy, etc.). Isn't that crazy? Imagine buying a car that just said Ford on the back and didn't include Mustang.

If someone asked you what type of phone you have, would you be able to tell her? Maybe. But even if only one in 100 people can't remember the name of their device, doesn't it make sense to put its name on the back? How would you recommend it to a friend if you can't remember what it's called?

The Counter Argument

Technology changes very quickly and new products come out all the time. If a new product flops and there isn't a version 2.0 produced, manufacturers don't want customers to remember the name of the device — they would rather create loyalty to their overall brand (Samsung, HTC Motorola, etc) and not a specific product that may not be offered in two years.

A Call for Change

The above counter argument illustrates a huge flaw in the mobile device space: companies are content with producing a large number of different devices with the hope that one of them is successful enough to warrant new editions. Forget the other ones existed and don't remember their names. That's where Apple is different — it produces one phone and gets it right every time. Most device companies are playing not to lose. Apple intends to win every time.

Add This To Your To-Do List

Mobile device manufacturers: start including names on your products. That little gesture shows us that you're committed to making great products and helps us recommend them to our friends. You are all trying to create devices that outsell the iPhone. It's time to take a page from their book.

There's Never a Lack of Ideas

The Hardest Question You Can Ask a Marketer

2012-05-29T19:02:00.000-07:00

Tough Question

"What would you do if I gave you another dollar?"

That's the hardest question you can ask a marketing professional. The answer varies for every business and it's difficult to figure out. Invest in a better customer call center? More ads on Google? A new direct mail piece? An ad in a trade magazine?

The question is so difficult because most marketers don't know the value each dollar across their different marketing channels (that's called return on investment). An entire industry within marketing called attribution modeling seeks to solve this problem. Yet, far too few marketers have attempted to tackle this problem.

Solving it starts with gathering consumer data. At a minimum, it requires excellent website analytics and a flexible customer database. The best companies are able to gather consumer data across channels and build models to know how to spend that extra marketing dollar.

The One Dollar Challenge

It would be fun to gather stories of where marketers have figured out attribution of their marketing dollars. So, if you tell me how far a dollar goes across your different marketing channels, I'll donate the next dollar to your marketing budget.

Add This To Your To-Do List

The best way to start down the path of attribution modeling is to create a basic customer database. Begin with information that you already know about your customers — name, address, past order amounts, products bought, date of purchase, etc. Then, install Google Analytics on your website. It's free and very easy to use. I have used it on every website I've worked on. After that, give me a call and we'll chat.

There's never a lack of ideas.