Recipe Postcard Marketing Tip for Businesses

This is an example of a personal postcard marketing campaign. The Cream Cheese Lasagna recipe is a old family favorite.

 

 As a graphic designer, I am always looking for “out of the box” ideas to share with my clients to help them be remembered. One idea I love to share is custom personalized recipe postcard marketing.  

It’s a great way to reach out to your clients and connect on a personal level. Basically you select one of your favorite recipes, add a personal note and direct mail them quarterly to your client list.  

You can send one recipe for summer, fall, winter and spring. Your clients will enjoy getting a new recipe to try and you will be able to connect with your clients by adding a personal note that relates to why you like the recipe and wanted to share it. Your clients will also keep your recipe postcard which will keep you top of mind.  

Think about using recipe postcard marketing the next time you want a unique and personal way to reach out and connect with your clients. It’s the perfect marketing recipe!

How to be prepared for your next on-air interview

I’ve just returned from giving a five-minute on-air interview with Fishers Chamber of Commerce President, Dan Canan about my business Gurtowsky Graphics and the Fishers Business Insider, a monthly publication that I design for the Fishers Economic & Community Development Commission in conjunction with the chamber.

Note to self. Be prepared.

You’d never know that my college background was in broadcast news. I was so nervous during the interview that I mis-spoke certain titles and internally sounded like I was rambling on about nothing.

So I’m writing this blog to give you a few tips in case you find ourself in front of the camera with a live microphone.

• Make sure you have a clear understanding from the interviewer about the topic that you’ll be speaking.
• Arrive a few minutes early so you can adjust to your new surroundings. (This interview was held in the produce section of a Super Target.)
• Write a few ideas ahead of time or small topics that you can share if needed during the interview. But have one topic or reason in particular for conducting the interview. For example, are you promoting a particular event for your company or business? Or is there a particular area of expertise and information that you want to share with your audience?
• Focus your eyes, ears and attention on the interviewer not the camera man. (This can be difficult because you aren’t sure who you’re really talking to.)
• Relax. Treat the interview setting like it’s a casual, comfortable conversation that you are having with a friend or co-worker. (But be sure to mind your p’s and q’s.)
• Don’t forget to thank the interviewer at the end.
• If you’re happy with your interview or feel your information is important to share, be sure to tell your friends, co-workers and others in your sphere when to look for your interview to air, and give us the time, station and day if possible.
• Have fun. Your personality will shine through if you can take a deep breath, be relaxed and speak casually and professionally.

Business Networking: Is it worth it for your business?

As I head off to a Fishers Chamber of Commerce luncheon today I sometimes ask myself if business networking is worth it for my business? And the answer has to be yes. But that yes doesn’t come easily. I like to call any type of networking “sweat equity marketing.” Meaning you can’t just plunk down your membership fee, sit down and expect business to fall into your lap instantly or at all.

Instead join professional organizations with longevity in mind and roll up your sleeves and get to work. That’s how you’ll get business. Some ways that you can work your “sweat equity marketing” is to volunteer to take on a leadership role. For instance, I quickly realized that the best way to become more familiar and more valuable to the Fishers Chamber of Commerce was to volunteer to be one of their Ambassadors. As an ambassador we help new members at events feel more welcome and show them the ropes. We represent the chamber as leaders and go to people whenever a member needs anything and we extend our time and sometimes our talent when needed to help the chamber maintain and even grow their organization. And we commit to attending atleast six events per year.

What do you get out of it? You begin to naturally build relationships with professionals who live in or near your town or city and people get to know, like and trust you. So when they do need your product or service they think of and choose you and your company first.

It doesn’t happen overnight and may not happen for the first six months of your membership. But eventually it will happen. So the next time you attend a professional networking event ask yourself, “What can I do to make business networking worth it for my business?”