Category Archives: Strategy

I stand corrected, King Jewelers!

I stand corrected, King Jewelers!

As you may know, I love jewelry, maybe because my Dad was a Costume Jewelry manufacturer on 36th Street in New York for all my growing-up years.

Recently I was going to my dermatologist and stopped in at King Jewelers. I wanted to buy a bracelet for my cousin’s daughter for the holidays.

When I saw their beautiful brochure, I jumped to the conclusion that they were stuck there on the table. Being a staunch direct marketer, I thought they should be in the mail, going to my apartment and all my friends’ also in Aventura. Read the rest of this entry

The irresistible lure of “this thingie FREE when you buy that thingie!”

The irresistible lure of “this thingie FREE when you buy that thingie!”

This ad was in the January 17, 1969 Life Magazine. It featured a simple “gift with purchase” offer, the kind we still use in direct marketing.

You bought the GE vacuum cleaner then you sent the hang tag with the on-page coupon and GE sent you a Tensor lamp for free. You had a month to take advantage of the offer which makes for a strong “call to action”.

Back in 1969, the Tensor Lamp was new and cool so it had some cachet.

Things haven’t changed much in 42 years.

Gifts with purchase still work. A very common one these days is a designer makeup bag with cosmetics purchase in a department store, especially Macy’s.

The gift has to be (perceived to be) valuable enough for people who are undecided to make their decision.

Ginsu knives were successful because of that technique. They kept showing infomercials demonstrating these amazing knives will cut through a tin can, a radiator hose and still be sharp enough to slice a tomato – paper thin! When you bought the set, your free gift was sometimes a set of steak knives absolutely FREE! Read the rest of this entry

Direct Marketing: Why Not?

Direct Marketing: Why Not?

The other day I was window-shopping in my neighborhood and dropped into King Jewelers in Aventura. I happen to have been born with a “Jewelry Gene”. All of the sparkle and glitter of the jewelry, shining through the glass cases, made my eyes light up!

As I walked around the store, I picked up a couple of brochures. They were beautifully made, with a glossy finish and cardstock. I couldn’t help but wonder…why were they sitting on a counter? Why don’t they mail them to their top customers?

One of the brochures I picked up was for Chanel; it featured their J12 Chromatic watches. The cost to make a brochure of this caliber is not cheap. The high gloss, heavy paperweight, with folds inside AND a sleeve… not a cheap project at all.

Another one I picked up was for King Jewelers. It was a book really, with 70 pages of Harry Winston, Chopard, Judtih Ripka, and Jaeger-LeCoultre gracing the pages.

Printing brochures and catalogs like this is expensive. The way I see it, they’re missing an opportunity to send them to their best customers. Read the rest of this entry

The Joy of Small Towns

The Joy of Small Towns

A few weeks ago, business took me to a beautiful town called High River.

It’s in the Alberta foothills about an hour south of Calgary. On the drive down from the airport, all you see are big skies, rolling country and a glorious Rocky Mountain backdrop on your right.

High River, population about 10,000, is home to some pretty sophisticated corporations but the town itself, especially downtown, looks like a perfect movie set. In fact, some pretty good movies have been filmed there. High River “played” Smallville in Superman and Superman III and Clint Eastwood shot The Unforgiven there.

But the little local movie house still looks exactly the way it looked when it opened in 1927. Inside, it’s a gem. The popcorn is always just popped, and the licorice is homemade. Once when I came out into the sunshine after a matinee, the sidewalk was lined with little tables covered with various handmade knickknacks such as pot holders and aprons, all being sold, for peanuts, by the local ladies who’d made them. I loved the place perhaps because it’s the opposite of New York City, my home town. Read the rest of this entry

Does “Luxury” even mean anything anymore?

Does “Luxury” even mean anything anymore?

When I was little, my Mom wanted a mink coat because, as she put it, “It was the ultimate luxury”. But every year orthodontist payments, a new car, cleaning up after a flood, etc., etc. took precedence over the mink.

Finally, my Dad bought her the mink coat. She went for fittings, paraded around in it (even on hot summer days), took joy in showing us how soft it was, and, generally, just loved her one big luxury item.

Back then, I knew what Luxury meant. I’m not sure any more, not since I started running into things that are billed as Luxury but seem to be fairly ordinary.

Companies call us to do “luxury marketing“.

My most obvious run-in with faux luxury happened a few years ago when I was invited to speak to the Luxury Marketing Council at a new “Luxury” hotel in downtown Miami. The hotel was new and clean with great service but the decor and layout were minimalist. Maybe that’s luxury these days. If so, what do we call the 7 star hotels in Beijing, Milan and Dubai? Deluxe luxury? Read the rest of this entry

The Power of Positive in a Recession

The Power of Positive in a Recession

I know, I know. It’s not officially a recession. But it sure feels like it when the stock market graphs look like my latest EKG.

In times like these I remember when I was a little girl and my mother took me to Manhattan’s Marble Collegiate Church to hear the Reverend Norman Vincent Peale talk about The Power of Positive Thinking.

He was amazing but I hadn’t thought of him in years, not until we all began to feel the pinch of a terrible economy.

Small business owners, like me, blanch at the word Recession. Some of us panic. Some cut prices, cut staff. Thanks to Reverend Peale, I prefer to think about positive approaches. I start by remembering that we have a choice:

1. We can pack up our tents and go home, or

2. We can try something new.

We always pick #2.

1. I’m making myself accountable first, accountable myself to work on my next book, be more creative (in all elements of their business) for our clients and learn new things.

2. As soon as I find myself working on a new creative program, I start having fun. For some odd reason, I think about Tom Dixon, the Blendtec CEO whose “Will it blend?” videos usually go viral. In this one, he purees an iPad and it’s had over 12 millions views

Great storytelling and that’s always made for effective marketing.

3. Your network can be golden for you. If you’re on LinkedIn, keep in touch with people you’ve worked with in the past, former clients, friends, relatives and people in your groups. I reach out to several people every day to see if I can be a resource for them. I help people find new positions, mention them in a post, or ask about their families. Networking is easy on Facebook and Twitter, too. It helps if you remember this: Don’t just ask for something, offer something. Read the rest of this entry

Social Media in Sports Marketing

Social Media in Sports Marketing

A few months ago, we watched our local team, the Miami Heat, in the NBA championship final against the Mavericks. There was so much buzz created across the country for these games, that we wondered how marketers get the fans going. Our friend Alex Gomez is Vice President of Van Wagner Sports and Entertainment. They’re a full service Sports and Entertainment marketing firm that specializes in retail, media, financial services and pharma consumer and trade marketing initiatives. We asked Alex to share some insight on Sports Marketing and how to keep the fans roaring, EVEN after a loss. Read the rest of this entry