stuff4business.com

There’s no excuse for producing boring business cards that merely provide your name an address.

With a little bit of creative brainpower you can easily turn your business card into something that will capture the attention and memory of your potential customers.

This gem says it all, and you can guarantee it will be pulled out and frequently shown to the friends and families of the recipients.

Using blind and heat embossing, die cutting and textured stocks you add a tactile feel to your card, and for very little additional expense, will add to the dramatic impact of your business card.

Too often designers and printers merely “copy cat” what everyone else has, this robs you and your business of all the extra potential that is available and put your name at “Top of Mind” when a buying decision is made.

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Forget the WIMPY little half hearted, sale signs that merely whisper: sale…

If you are going to have sale, then for goodness sake GO FOR IT!

SCREAM IT OUT, AT THE TOP OF YOUR LUNGS!!!

When most of the stores I see have sales, it’s as if they are ashamed and want to hide it away from their customers.

The major purpose of a sale is to move bucket loads of stock fast, to convert stuff to cash before the season leaves it in your storeroom for the next 6 -12 months. This is not a time to be wimpy and half hearted, it’s a time to attack and be bold.

When I saw the display above, I was so impressed I drove all the way home to get my camera, and, as the father of a computer addicted 16 year old, a retread on my credit cards.

And all this impact is achieved with inexpensive “off the shelf” display plastic sheeting.

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When I first started in Advertising I was given two books by my then mentor, The first is shown above “Brothel in Pimlico” the second was by John Caples entitled “Tested Advertising Methods”

Roy Brooks was a real estate agent who lived and worked in London some 70 years ago.

He became famous for his cleverly worded and blatantly HONEST Advertising copy.

He told you upfront if the house was dirty or in bad repair.

He commented on the owners’ circumstances and included descriptions of what class of people would feel most comfortable in the neighborhood.

His comments on decor include: tasteful, modern, hideous.

He said one property would be alright “if you TART it up a bit.”

It is a great  lesson on how to show a products apparent weaknesses as an opportunity.

You will find the odd reprint copy available if you do a search on Google.

Both books have remained my favorites and have not been in anyway, outclassed by Messrs Ogilvy nor Godin. (in fact, I find a great deal of  duplication from these later contenders)

So often, stairways are regarded as a massive disadvantage to the entry of any business.

Well, as these two pictures show, with a little creativity, they can be turned into attention grabbing billboards and a major feature of your promotional kit.

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Frequent visitors to this site and my stuff4restaurants site will tell you I love bizarre and crazy promotional ideas.

I like them because they are fun to do and a low cost method of getting people to talk about your business. (and probably because I am a little bizarre and crazy myself).

So you can imagine how excited I was when a reader sent me this little gem.

Could anybody use this toilet and not immediately start telling their friends about it?

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I’m not sure this is the way to maximize profit, but it certainly gets noticed for poking a bit of fun at all those URGENT, URGENT, going out of business, sales signs that have now become a cliche in every city.

It’s bold, it’s clear, it engages and reacts with passing traffic, it’s BRILLIANT! and absolutely impossible to ignore.

I guess you could call it “Light Entertainment”

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Here’s a great way to turn boring public seating into a powerful promotional tool.

The version shown here is a little too “subtle and non aggressive” for me, I would want a specific offer to be featured boldly and I would be using the opportunity to distribute some form of coupon, that will drove the potential customer to my counter. Having said all that, it is a great idea that appeals to every bodies frustration with the blandness of public furniture. The small expense required, would result in a promotional asset that could be used over and over again, changing the theme and message to suit the time of year and local festivities.
It’s one of those things that just puts a smile on your face, and that in Advertising, is the perfect way to begin a dialog.

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You can bet your shirt this great Advertising idea will be noticed by every car and every person that passes by.

A classic example of how to “BE DIFFERENT AND BE NOTICED” simply by dramatizing your product and placing it in an unexpected place.

What could you do like this?  C’mon, who said creating great promotion ideas couldn’t be fun, nobody was ever noticed by doing what everyone else does.

Naomi Dunford who publishes a blog at ItyBiz.com (who just happens to be a brilliant copy writer) has just published an excellant article on producing business cards.

HERES A SHORT EXCERPT OF WHAT SHE HAS TO SAY ON THE SUBJECT:

Business cards suck.

There are about a thousand people in the world who have good cards and sadly, they all sell things I can’t afford to buy. Thinking of getting new cards printed? Here’s what not to do.
1. Don’t be too similar.

Have you ever been the unfortunate recipient of a real estate agent’s business card? Apparently, there is a rule in the house selling industry - if you don’t have tacky, laminated business cards with a bad headshot taken circa 1982, you can’t actually get your real estate license. If you take an average card and remove all industry specific information, you’ll still know it’s for real estate because it’s still shockingly ugly.

Round your corners. (Note: this is an especially good idea since the first thing to get ratty on a card is the corners. Ratty card = going in the garbage). Use strong color. Don’t limit yourself to 12-point Times New Roman or Georgia or Garamond. Use a picture of your dog instead of your own ugly mug. Whatever. Just differentiate yourself a bit.

For the full article click here