Ideas - Using Traditional Paid Advertising Methods to Generate Your Own Leads!
This section entertains new ideas on how to generate leads from people who are already advertising in other media such as shop-a-dockets, magazines, newspapers etc.
Business card advertising has so much potential, so if you have to pay alittle money for marketing to test offers, then the upside can be very high.
Dean
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35 Responses to “Ideas - Using Traditional Paid Advertising Methods to Generate Your Own Leads!”
deanc
March 2nd, 2007
nattytude |
Well…I had a great day! One person CALLED ME from your lead generation system…wooo hooo! That was much easier then calling them. I’ll let you know how it goes.
I’m excited now!
Feb 20, 4:36 PM —
deanc
March 2nd, 2007
Awesome news nattytude…got to be happy about that!
Did you set an appointment right away? I would assume you did.
What did you tell them about your service?
Let us know.
Dean
Feb 21, 9:09 AM
deanc
March 2nd, 2007
bizcardexpert |
Nattytude,
When you say that your going to put business cards on people’s cars, is it going to be a free offer of some sort?
It’s a great idea and makes sense. Even a brouchure like the one in the manual could work. You got me thinking about this idea seriously, because there are plenty of business that have cars all over town. Surley the numbers game would work, and even if they got it twice within a month, then that’s even better!
To get 5000 brouchures printed online is cheap, so this could be a good idea to keep a bunch in the car at all times incase a car is within site that I could put one on.
Let me know your progress with it, and i’ll do likewise.
Aaron
Feb 22, 1:21 PM —
deanc
March 2nd, 2007
My idea for getting leads is by creating my own 2 page flyer and sending them to businesses only in my local area through the local post office called ” unaddressed mail”. About what else Advertising Business Cards offering free Advertising if they put up one of the displays in their business. High traffic areas of course to help all businesses.
The cost is very minimal about 10 cents per business and out of the 300 Local businesses hope to create a buzz in the town a 5-10% return is what I’m hoping for and if that works will be concentrating on a larger city close to me that has over 3000 businesses. With a 5-10% return will be buying alot of displays to keep up with the demand. Will keep everyone advised on my outcome.
Very Excited to get this kick started.
devans1
devans1
March 6th, 2007
I just ordered not only the car signs that were recommended in Deans manual but another site I looked at had a bumper magnetic sign that is 3″ X 24″. I had put my phone number on the car door signs and just my website address on the bumper sign. The bumper sign was only $10 through www.thriftysigns.com.
N Jasa
nancyjasa
March 7th, 2007
The templates in the manual on pp. 37-39 are exciting tools. I think they would also make great additions to post cards or flyers to be distributed by mail or in person.
maryl2010
March 9th, 2007
Good idea with the bumper signs Nancy….great attention grabbing spot that would surely attract attention. Any way you can maximise your car to make money is a smart thing to do. It’s scares me how many blank cars doors are on the road everyday that should be getting used as advertising space.
This is the exact reason why I put some useful information together on how you can start a small advertising business on the side, by utilizing your car doors! You can read this to get a better about idea about what I mean… www.carmagnetbusiness.com
Use your car as much as ‘legally’ possible!
Dean
deanc
March 13th, 2007
THIS IS A POST FROM ‘NATTYTUDE’. I HAD TO SHIFT IT HERE TO TRY TO KEEP THE POSTS IN RELEVENT CATEGORIES. Nattytude, you posted this under ‘competitions’. Great idea by the way, I can see it helping people who aren’t used to cold calling!
Written by nattytude - Mar 16, 1:38 PM
Another idea i’m going to try, is get maybe 500 or 1000 business card size magnets made up.
Here is my plan. I’m going to walk into the businesses in the area and hand them a magnet and tell them to put it on their fridge. What I am hoping is going to happen is that they will read it on the spot as I hand it to them and ask me “how does this work?”. Of course it will have ‘Advertise Your Business for FREE’ written on it.
So I think this could be a simple way to build my confidence by walking in and giving them the magnet as a gift. They will either ask me on the spot how it works, or they will stick it on their fridge and ring me at a later date. Kind of a non sales approach. This suits my style and confidence for now. If they are interested on the spot, i’ll go and grab the display out of my car.
I can also stick one of the magnets on any business cars that i see while i’m walking around, and i’ll put it right next to the drivers side door handle so they can’t miss it. By doing this, I feel I will get customers that I never would have found otherwise.
I hope this helps some.
nattytude
Mar 16, 1:38 PM
deanc
March 16th, 2007
HOW WE GOT APPOINTMENTS WITH ‘HARD TO GET TO’ CORPORATE BOSSES.
Here is EXACTLY how my business partner and I got infront of some BIG players to show them our business card displays.
We used a technique that costed alittle more money, but our appointment rate was super high! I’m talking 7 out of 10 lawyers and accounts would RING US after they got this!
As I mentioned in a recent post, the business owners that are already successful really appreciate clever marketing…they know it when they see it. I’ve even had phone calls telling me what a great idea it is once they’ve received it!
So here it is…
1) Firstly, I used to find out the business owners name by calling their office.
2) I would then get the address to send it to.
3) I would then insert the business owners name into the headline of an article I had written. The article was a ‘look into the future’ of this persons business and how successful it became after advertising in my business card displays.
EG. BEN SMITH GETS THE NATIONAL AWARD FOR SMARTEST MARKETING IN THE THE ACCOUNTING INDUSTRY.
So I would substitute their name and industry into the headline so it was highly personalised. Then I would go into an article about business card display advertising and how quick this guys business grew as a result of advertising in 10 of my display card displays.
4) I would then insert the article into a picture frame! YES…a picture frame from the $2 shop. I purchased 50 of then at once.
5) I then wrapped the picture frame in shiny gold wrapping paper with a big bow tied around it. WHY? Because the gatekepper wouldn’t dare open a gold wrapped gift addressed to the owner!
6) I then sent it by courier to the business!
This went down a treat!
Now you need to picture what happens when this ‘package’ arrives to its intended target!
Firstly a courier turns up with this shiny gold gift with a bow around it. Then, the secratary DOESN’T DARE to open it…in fact…she gets a buzz out of hand delivering this gift to the bosses office. Then the boss opens it and gets a BIG ego kick because the first thing he sees is his name in the headline and how smart he is. THEN he sits it on his desk (because it’s a photo frame and sits upright) for everyone to see.
I’VE WALKED INTO PEOPLE OFFICES TO DO THE APPOINTMENT, AND IT’S HANGING ON THEIR WALL!!!
This is the best appointment setting idea you’ll ever come across. This idea got the CEO of AUDI motorcars calling…not us calling him…him calling us!!
I’ve just given you a gem that works a treat. It does end up costing about $7 per lead, but it’s worth every single cent! If they take just one space in your display (which most will because of your clever marketing skills), then it’s paid for many times over.
Imagine if you sent this to real estate agents and people is the sales industry, you would have your displays full quicker then you think.
Here is the article we used http://businesscarddisplays.info/sample-newspaper-article/
This is how you approach the corporates to get almost guaranteed appointments!
Dean
deanc
March 20th, 2007
Great Idea…did you make it look like an article in a magazine, newspaper? I’ll pay you for a template….
dmiles
dmiles2
March 20th, 2007
Hi Dean…I did the same thing in my restaurant. We would take the photos out of the local newpaper announcing new appointments to positions in companys. Then we would plasticize the announcement and send it to them for them to keep. People always love to see their picture int he paper for good things. We would then add a small gift certificate that read…Picture Yourself at….and many would call, nearly all would use our restaurant.
Digimex.
digimex
March 20th, 2007
This is an interesting approach. I believe it always helps to give the person/business owner a pat on the back telling them how great they are and in this case how much greater they can be. I assume the articles were fictional that you made up to suit each client. This concept will really help us because we have a plan to approach the local automotive manufacturer to host displays throughout the factory. Then we will approach the local car dealerships and get the salespeople to advertise their business card in these displays. They are guaranteed business because the employees get discounts through the company when they buy their own product as well they are supporting their own job security. This will put the salesman’s business care right in their hand. Veronica
timbitt
March 20th, 2007
Yep, I did make it look like a newpaper article.
It’s on my computer in Australia, but i’m going to try to get a copy of it some how. Leave it with me and i’ll let you know if I manage to get ahold of it.
Dean
deanc
March 21st, 2007
Hi Digimex,
That is good to hear the concept has already worked for you.
So are you saying that you would just take any old clipping out of the paper that was of a ‘promotional’ nature with someones name in it and send it to them…just so they get an ego kick? Then… how you made money was by simply attaching a gift certificate for your current business?
That is really really really smart…I like it!
So here is an idea ‘OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD’ that is a combination of what Digimex is saying and what I did.
1) How about you create a GENERIC ficticious article that takes about how great a business grew from putting their business cards in your displays.
2)Then, go through the newpaper (as digimex suggested) and find ANY business that is advertising.
3) Substitute their name throughout the article (You can do this at the click of a button (see desrciption below how to do this in microsoft word)).
4) Print it out and put in envelope
5) Add a little offer about what you do, and once they see their name all through the article, PLUS an offer to advertise in your business card displays…they will most likely call you!
This could be a great way to get leads. You may think that it’s going to cost 50c per mailing piece, but when you add up the gas costs, your time etc that it takes to go door knocking, it’s not to bad!…and it’s very personalized! Test it on a few business and see what happens!
Here’s how to substitute peoples details in word.
1) Open a word doc and write/design your mailing peice.
2) Click the ‘edit’ tab at the top.
3) Scroll down and click the ‘replace’ button
4) A small box will pop up that has 3 buttons across the top ‘find’ ‘replace’ and ‘go to’.
5) Click the ‘replace’ tab
6) Next to ‘Find what’ type in ‘John’s gardening’ (or whatever is currently in the article)
7) Then in the box below, type in the new business name… ‘Michelle’s nails’. 
Then there is 5 buttons across the bottom…hit the ‘replace all’ button
That’s it! Even if you have their name written in the article 50 times, all the names will change at the click of a button. Very easy to do. Follow the above directions and your done.
Give it a try…there are thousands of people advertising that would suit your business card display offer…imagine all the leads!
Dean
deanc
March 21st, 2007
GREAT IDEAS!…I like the generic article idea…faster and less work!
Timbitt…another great idea for placing in plants…discounts for employees…I can’t wait to try this.
This blog is so worth the investment to get on…and the ideas come from bouncing ideas off each other is gold!
Thanks to all…learning so much!
dmiles
dmiles2
March 21st, 2007
Ok, it appears that the idea of sending a personalized ‘newpaper look-a-like’ to attract people into your business card displays has alot of interest. Thanks for the emails.
As I mentioned in the reply emails, it’s on my computer in Australia all locked up. But I just re-wrote it. It’s now in a word document on my website, so you can use it right away. This will also save you plenty of time. Go to http://businesscarddisplays.info/sample-newspaper-article/ to get a copy.
Have some fun with this idea. You don’t have to use the picture frame if you want to cut down costs. Just modify the article, print it and mail it to them in a hand written
envelope.
Enjoy!
deanc
March 21st, 2007
As might be able to tell, me main passion is marketing and talking about how to get customers….this area is obviously key when in business. Let me tell you a quick story about a guy I know very well in Australia who started a traditional business….and how he got customers through the door….real fast! This is just to open your mind alittle and maybe you can adapt it…
That Word, ‘Free’
Don’t be afraid to give people stuff for free if you ever advertise your business card dispenser business in print media. Adam, of Adam’s Hairdressing, opened a hairdressing salon in Sydney, he headlined his ad with ‘2105 free haircuts’ and he got 600 people through his door in the first week, he captured all their names and details and even though they didn’t pay for the haircut, he still made money!
This was because his customers felt a little bit guilty about the freebie, so they bought products. And then he did the numbers and found that 30% of those people returned - so he instantly gained 200 paying customers just by writing “2105 free” in the headline! How powerful was that to kickstart a business?
So don’t be afraid to give something away for free in order to get customers, because Adam gained all those customers straight away, whereas if he were to wait for them to come through the door it would have been a long haul. Instead, BANG he got a customer base straight away, and it didn’t cost him anything because he was giving away a service, which he didn’t have to purchase. So that’s just a simple example of basic marketing that can work a treat. So how could you do something simular to get customers for your business card dispensers?
Another of his ideas was when you sat in the chair in his salon there was a little plaque with a sponsored kid that said, ‘a portion of the fee you’re your haircut goes to sponsoring this child’ so people felt, ‘I’ll come back here because every dollar I spend at this hairdressing salon a bit of it goes to a sponsored kid’.
Then what would happen is when they’d get out of the chair he’d give them a pre-recorded a CD about his business, it said – “Hi I’m Adam, the owner of Adam’s Hairdressing, here’s is a little bit about me, and where a portion of your money goes…” so when they’d get into their car they’d stick the CD in and listen to a story about him and how he started the salon. It’s just marketing, marketing, marketing – how simple an idea is that? If you go to another salon, there’s nothing like it. AND GUESS WHAT…he quickly sold out to a buyer and made some very quick money with that business. (NO NO…don’t go and buy your local hairdresser…focus on displays). But if you do own a service based business right now, then there’s a perfect idea for you.
So that’s how Adam set himself apart. What are you doing to set yourself apart from other companies that sell advertising? Maybe you don’t want to give anything away for free, and fair enough….but is the short-term pain worth the long-term gain?
Some business card dispenser operators don’t need to do this because their sales ability is very high through experience, but some do. My business partner and I used to put on free seminars that would actually cost us between $10,000 - $25,000 every time to put on…but it was FREE. Did we make money…oh yes we did!
Open your mind to ideas like the one above, and try to adapt where possible.
Dean
deanc
March 27th, 2007
Actually, I just thought how you could adapt the idea above.
In this forum, we have recently spoken about sending out a mailing piece that looks like a newpaper article with the business owners name in the headline (It’s on my website). What you could send along with that mailing piece is a CD, or one of those business card size DVD’s that the business owner can put into their laptop, and they see a nice little visual demonstration of how your displays work….and an introduction to who you are of course. (You may be able to short-cut this by putting a link to your website on the mail out, which could have the same demo…that would be the cheaper option).
Just an idea…wooo hooo…I can hear the cogs turning! I love this stuff…fresh ideas to get customers will never get boring!
It would be nice to hear some other lead generation ideas. Some of you must be good at marketing, or have some creative thoughts on how to get customers for your business card dispensers???
Dean
deanc
March 27th, 2007
Hi Dean,
I liked your comment about the word “Free”. That is what I did in my Flyer campaign as I would offer customers who wanted to sign up for 6 months they would receive 1 month Free advertising and 12 month commitment 2 Free months advertising.
Also businesses wanting to have the displays in their stores would receive Free advertising for their efforts. As I’m just starting out with this I will let you know how well this works for me and anyone else who wants to use the idea as well.
Thanks
devans1
devans1
March 27th, 2007
Hi Dave,
Yeh…let us know how it goes! I have seen your flyer and it looks the part….but you never know until you test of course. Do a small test run, and it you get the response rate you’re looking for then roll it out!
Who are you sending it to…any particular industry?
Good luck
Dean
deanc
March 27th, 2007
I sending to every business in my area 275 businesses and hoping to get a 5-10% return that these businesses will sign up. If I’m successful then I will hit a larger city 20 min. away with 3000 businesses.
Has anyone else in this blog just started out with just sending flyers to the businesses in your area.
Would like to know if you did and what was your response rate to your customers signing up.
Thanks
devans1
devans1
March 28th, 2007
Hi devans1
Great to see proactive activity happening!
Yes, that would be great to see a 10% response rate for your business card dispenser offer….but…that would cetainly be on the high side I would think. If you do, that would be grand!
It sounds like your doing a blanket approach (not personalized to name or industry)…would that be correct? How did you get the names of your local businesses…any ‘clever’ way we should know about?
Nice work…I hope it comes off for you!…I guess even a 2% response would cover your costs and add some cash into your pocket…best of luck on this mail out.
Dean
deanc
March 28th, 2007
devans1…
Please make sure you let us know how it goes…I hate the phone but I do it…would be great to have them contacting us.
Are you sending letter, envelope or postcard, rackcard?
Really hope this works…
dmiles
dmiles2
March 28th, 2007
HOW WOULD YOU LIKE 30,000 - 40,000 SETS OF EYES LOOKING AT YOUR OFFER EVERYDAY?
I have an idea for you. This would take alittle bit of effort (not much), but i’m sure you would get alot of leads from it.
You know how it costs $400 - $500 for a decent size add in a newpaper…only to find the newspaper gets thrown out one or two days later? Well what if you found a way to spend $400 - $500 and have eye-catching advertisment that runs EVERYDAY?
You should consider this…it could really make a difference. Check this picture out, then come back to this message… http://www.marketingbestpractices.com/temp/truck-sign.jpg
Did you look at it?
Did you notice how eye-catching it was?
Did you notice that the sign was MOBILE?
This is such a clever marketing tactic.
SO HOW CAN YOU USE THIS IN YOUR BUSINESS CARD ADVERTISING BUSINESS?
You might be saying to yourself….”But I need to own a truck for this marketing tactic to work.”
Not so.
With a little imagination, you’d be surprised what you can put a sign on (as long as it abides by property covenants.)
You could even build a sign and have it static on someones property next to a busy road…and just pay them to have it there? You’ll notice in the manual that the signs i’ve sugggested would be perfect for this!
Don’t just close this message and forget about it…have a good think as to how you could implement this. If you’re driving to appointments everyday…why not generate leads along the way?
Dean
Credit: Thanks to David Frey for that photo and idea.
deanc
April 4th, 2007
Great post Dean. I have used David Frey Marketing for years know and I can tell you its the best around. Get his FREE newsletter or check out his forum.
http://www.marketingbestpractices.com/
Steven Scheeler
Steven Scheeler
April 4th, 2007
Here is another marketing Idea that I got from David Frey marketing system.
Here is an Idea that I use for the auto glass business.
When I use the NEW SOC picture plus system and the referral movie system customers come to me. Let me explain.
I took a picture of a cracked windshield on a service truck and put it on a greeting card. On the inside of the card I wrote in my own hand writing to the owner or manager ,this is the impression or image you are leaving with the public. With our product your wind shield becomes scratch,and chip resistant. The best part is I did this with the automated SOC system and the cards only cost me a little over $1 and that includes postage. I also followed up with a thank you card or I ask for referrals by sending them a I love referrals card.
Use this for your business card displays. Take a picture and upload it to the front of the card. The system even lets you put what you want to say on the front of the card. Lets say you were sending me a card. On the front of the card would be a picture of one of your displays at a auto repair shop. On the front of the card it would read. A repair shop wants to send you business.
On the inside of the card you can upload more pictures maybe of the front of the store or of a customer taking a card.Do this for each niche Restaurant , movie theater , Realtor etc… Find out who there biggest referral is and go from there.
To find out more about this system go to.
http://www.thereferralmovie.com/cgi-bin/team.cgi?id=St13&action=index
and
http://www.senderofchanginglives.com
If you need help with this system I’m a phone call away.
call me
Steven Scheeler
Desert Breeze Glass
http://www.desertbreezeglass.com
Steven Scheeler
April 4th, 2007
Now that sounds interesting Steven.
I’m going to see what this is all about, because how you described it above sounds like a nice attention grabbing technique. And the fact that you have used it - and it works, makes it all the better.
Thanks for the post…very useful to all business card operators!
Dean
deanc
April 4th, 2007
One the goals for this blog is to open your mind to the endless possibilities of how to make money with this small business opportunity we are operating…business card displays! It’s all about the marketing and best ways to get customers…so here is another idea that’s RIGHT OUTSIDE THE BOX…until you hear it of course.
If you are ever driving on a toll road, pay the toll for the car behind you, and ask the toll collector to give your business card to the car’s driver and tell him or her you paid the toll. Sure, it’s a hit and miss scenario, but you never know who might be behind you. And it’s a low-cost tactic that has imagination written all over it. If the toll is only $0.50 or below $1, you could do this everyday you pass through without breaking the bank. Chances are good that at least one out of 10 people will contact you… so only $5.00 per week out of your pocket with this idea, that’s actually a cheap way to generate leads! And you’ll put a smile on the face of the other 9 that don’t contact you…so it’s all worth it.
Think about how you would feel if someone paid for your toll? Me, well I would certainly give them a call as a thank-you at least, and who knows, if their service is something of value, I would probably buy it because that person thought of me first (and I appreciate smart marketing).
Just like you look for new money making opportunities, you’ve got to look for new marketing opportunities also.
Dean
deanc
April 4th, 2007
Here’s a clever ‘marketing’ strategy you should know about to get yourself free gas/petrol each week …check it out www.carmagnetbusiness.com .
Dean
deanc
April 5th, 2007
HOW TO GET A MAILING OUT TO POTENTIAL CLIENTS FOR FREE.
What if you were to send out a mail blast to your potential clients (business owners) and just write your message on one side.
On the other side of the flyer, you can sell advertising (cheap to cover costs) to another company wanting to get to business owners. A business card printer would certainly be interested…website developer etc.
Even if you go halves with another business owner….that would still be worth it. Come to think of it, you could have a double-sided flyer and so could they.
That’s another idea to reduce your costs. It all adds up!
Dean
deanc
April 6th, 2007
I’m always looking for ways to advertise, and this blog is certainly great for that.
Another way i’ve found to get some good ideas is to type in “advertising ideas” into the search engine. Make sure you type it in just like that with the ” ” around it, because then you get exact results of what you’re looking for. There are so many great ideas there to use.
New blog looks great Dean. Thanks for all the ideas everyone!
nattytude
April 20th, 2007
nattytude |
Hi Dean,
This is a great idea, and you will certianly have my attention every couple of days!
Thanks for the tips in the book, i’m already putting them to work.
I intend to ask you a couple of questons about the lead generation system. I have already had some success with it, but just want to extend it alittle further. Will be intouch in the next couple of days.
Thanks again for this blog idea!
Feb 16, 10:08 PM —