Genuine Business Lessons from Donald Trump
Shaun Rein

“At a time when Main Street is calling for the scalps of business titans from John Thain, the former chief executive officer of Merrill Lynch, to Ken Lewis, CEO of Bank of America, somehow Donald Trump remains unscathed. Not just unscathed but extremely popular….He has mastered the art of defining the core values of his brand and leveraging his brand equity to appeal to a wide customer base. In a time when consumers are seeking to stretch their shopping dollars further than ever before by buying brands they trust and know are of good value, companies absolutely need to define themselves and differentiate themselves. The winners will be those who carve out and cultivate their brand positions. They can take many cues from Trump.” -Excerpt from FORBES

Read more: http://www.forbes.com/2009/05/04/donald-trump-marketing-leadership-managing-image.html

Like guerrilla warfare, guerrilla marketing uses ambush and mobility as tactics for success. There are several aspects that make up guerrilla marketing, one of them is known as fusion marketing.

 

As entrepreneurs and small business owners, it seems as if everything must be done individually. With fusion marketing however, collaborating is the key. Those who are the most likely to make alliances with you would be those who are termed “power partners”. Power partners are those who are in a similar market as you but do not necessarily compete with you. For example, a makeup artist and a photographer; a designer and a printer; an entrepreneur and an investor.

 

These collaborations can pave the way for a more successful business through joint coupons offered at the collaborating locations, incentives for purchases made for your product/your partner’s product, joint sales calls, joint advertisements – the possibilities are boundless.

 

Marketing requires a set of deliberate, planned-out steps with a persistent communication and execution. Though the probability to getting someone to act upon your offers is not immediate, the long run effect is increased revenue.

 

 

Seven steps to setting up your own fusion marketing arrangement:

Step 1: Define your power partners. Power partners are associates who are in a similar market but do not necessarily compete with you. They would be able to benefit from collaborating with you. (ie. Makeup artist and a photographer, massage therapist and a chiropractor)

Step 2: Figure out with your power partner what your offer will be. A graphic designer may give free small design while the printer offers 250 free business cards. A makeup artist can give a free trial and the photographer can give a discount on a minimum order of 10 portraits. Come up with a joint offer that works best.

Step 3: Write up a general letter of agreement. This document will state who does what and gets what so that there will be smoother communication. It does not have to be a major legal document.

Step 4: Package it up. Put together all the verbiage. Both businesses can write up separate documents (ie. sales letters, e-mail letters, marketing copies) and compare notes with one another.

Step 5: Combine mailing lists and communicate to both sets. It does not matter if you have more or less than your partner because ultimately when you combine both sets, everyone wins. You can do this through direct mail or e-mail.

Step 6: Be responsive to any responses. Fulfill offers and make it easy to sign up, buy, and keep track. Following up and giving attention to the prospects will convert them to regular clients.

Step 7: Follow up. Continue to market to the converted people as follow-up marketing.

 

 

 

    

- Guerrilla Marketing: Easy and Inexpensive Strategies for Making Big Profits from Your Small Business by Jay Conrad Levinson ($14.95 – Borders)

 

- Guerrilla Marketing In 30 Days by Jay Conrad Levinson ($19.95 – Borders)

 

- Startup Guide to Guerrilla Marketing: A Simple Battle Plan for First-Time Marketers by Jeannie Levinson ($21.95 – Borders)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My topic of study for the past week has been Sub-Saharan Africa. Though the region as a whole was an interesting topic, what captivated me the most was the country of Botswana. Botswana produces the 2^nd highest GDP growth in Sub-Saharan Africa, right after South Africa. What sets Botswana apart from South Africa is that Botswana does not have a mixed economy, but relies upon one main source of income: diamonds.

 

 

 

De Beers, a high-end luxury brand of jewelry known for engagement rings, originated from South Africa. The development of diamonds as a scarce resource was actually a pretty recent development. In the late 1800s when large diamond mines were being discovered by the ton, the British financiers who organized the mines came to the realization that their investments were in danger and that the high price of diamonds depended on their scarcity. In 1888, the major investors of the diamond mines merged together to form De Beers Consolidated Mines, Ltd., in South Africa. This single entity was powerful enough to control the production and create the illusion of the scarcity of diamonds.

 

 Now you’re reading this and you’re wondering, what does this have to do with marketing? I’ll tell you.

 

 

 

During the Depression when people were more worried about putting bread on the table than buying diamonds, the price of diamonds dropped. In order to bring the price up, De Beers had to come up with a strategy that would make people want to buy diamonds but not resell them. Their solution was the engagement ring and the motto “A diamond is forever”. Even though diamonds can be shattered, chipped, discolored, or incinerated into ash, the concept of eternity was branded.

 

De Beers branded the idea to the diamond through relentless marketing in the media, schools, and everyday social life. Three years after the launch of the campaign, it was reported that the sale of diamonds had increased 55% in the United States. De Beers will later on find extreme successes in other countries such as Japan, Germany, and Brazil. Through well-orchestrated advertising and public-relations campaigns, one company was able to change their market with the idea that the larger and finer the diamond, the greater the expression of love.

 

Now that is the power of marketing.

 

 

Marketing flourishes with reinvention and innovation. The competition is fierce for the sound bite length of a consumer’s attention…and that sound bite determines the success of failure of a campaign.

 

As a student of marketing, I make an effort to learn as much as I can from the marketing industry. Several of my peers and I went on a tour today at The Designory, an interactive marketing agency whose broad range of clients include Infiniti, Universal, and Fatburger. Located in downtown Long Beach, the drive there was a bit hectic due to crowd attracted to the Toyota Grand Prix. However, the tour of The Designory made up for all of it.

 

Within those four stories of marketing goodness, it’s difficult to tell the state of the outside economy. When I spoke with Eric, the “talent scout” of the agency, he made a point to emphasize that it was due to good communication and great customer service that sets Designory apart from their competitors. Furthermore, innovative techniques such as making pamphlets where potential clients and interactively explore a new car brings them ahead of the game. (ie. One of their campaigns for Nissan Cube included a CD that and perforated cards that allowed the consumer to interact with the vehicle in 3D)

 

So all in all, innovation and great customer service goes a long way. A company does not need to spend a lot of money in order to be creative. Do not view hard times and lack of finances as a barrier to creativity, but the foundation for creativity.

 

 

Business cards are a convenient and professional way to market yourself and your company. It is often the first impression people have, thus an appropriately designed business card is essential. As much as a business card does not fully represent a company nor does that suit you’re wearing does not make a full representation of yourself, a business card does a good job of helping a client determine whether they would want to work with you or not.

 

There are a variety of business card styles. The style chosen should be appropriate for the industry that you are in. For example, a lawyer who has neon pink cards with glitter letters would probably not get any clients because they won’t think that he would take their case seriously. When picking a style, be sure to choose the one that best supports your image. To start off, here are some diverse card styles:

 

 

 

Basic Cards: A very simple card often comprised of black ink printed on plain white or cream stock. This type of card is very direct and effective for those who only want the facts.

 

Picture Cards: Having a logo or a picture can help make a greater impact on people’s memory. It is often said that “A picture is worth a thousand words”; that is why a picture can also be used to not only represent a product, service, or benefit your business can provide, it uses less text making it more appealing to the client.

 

Tactile Cards: Other cards are distinguished by how they feel more than how they look. These cards include having raised letters, die cuts, and nontraditional materials such as metal or wood. These cards are often considerably more expensive due to the nonstandard production process that they must undergo.

 

Multipurpose Cards: Often seen for small businesses, these cards serve a dual purpose. One side can promote your name and business while the other side can serve as a coupon or appointment reminder.

 

As a final check before you head to DTN Tech to print your cards, be sure to include the essentials (name, title, company name, address, phone number, email, and website). If you don’t have time to design the card yourself, DTN Tech has a team of designers who can help you come up with perfect design for your company.

 

 

 

 

For more information click: http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/marketingbasics/marketingmaterials/article71900.html

 

 

Paraskevidekatriaphobia is fear of Friday the 13^th. According to Entrepreneur, about 9 percent of the American population is affected by this phobia resulting in about $800 million to $900 million in business revenue lost on this date.

 

Though it’s irrational to have such a fear because what kind of coffee you drink in the morning is completely unrelated to the outcome of your business venture, it’s understandable the comfort people find in doing routine activities.

 

So what are businesses doing to offset this loss? Some companies such as Crate & Barrel, played off on the superstition by running a “Lucky You” campaign on this date last year.

 

Like we’ve said before, creativity is the key. So get going on it!

 

 

Read more at: http://www.entrepreneur.com/management/operations/article200024.html

In accordance with Vietnamese New Year, DTN Tech is pleased to part of the annual Tet Festival in Garden Grove. Come visit us at our booth next to Wells Fargo for some free t-shirts and goodies! For more information go to: www.tetfestival.org.

In our last blog we mentioned that DTN Tech is all about being inspired….and what better way than to learn from the Ox itself? The Ox creates prosperity from hard work and fortitude. Though quiet and caring, the Ox can also be strong-minded, stubborn, and individualistic. The Ox is not an extravagant creature, preferring not to take risks with things such as credit cards and debt.

Now that you know a little more about the Ox, come celebrate with us this weekend at the Tet Festival and get inspired! The DTN Tech teams looks forward to seeing you.  

 

A new year bring upon us many changes; 2009 is no exception. This year at DTN Tech Marketing, we’re all about getting inspired through other people’s successes. As much as you have inspired us, we hope we can inspire you.

So from all of us at DTN Tech Marketing, we wish you a year filled with many successes, love, and inspiration.

 

 DTN Tech Marketing Team

The introduction of internet technology has changed the world forever. For marketers, the internet has proven to be the perfect solution to faster and more efficient communication through the use of teleseminars, online meetings, and webinars. This onslaught of technology has made it easier than ever to hold meetings across the world.

 

Despite that, great ambition comes in the form of great challenges. Though it may seem silly to say, the challenge that many wrestle with turns out to be the difference in time zones.

 

Whether you are serving the world community or being served by one of them, I have come across the perfect solution to all your time zone problems: World Clock, a website that allows you the ease of determining the current offset of time when you plug in the time (ie. Noon CST) of your event into the oh-so-useful Time Zone Converter. No longer will you have to agonize over the difference of PST and PDT. Save your stress for something more important (like your dog eating your presentation).

 

Another useful thing that World Clock can do is help you set up meeting planners in the form of a table when you input the cities of the attendees. If you frequent certain time zones and cities more often than others, the available personal world clock would be useful in letting you know what time it is.

 

All in all, World Clock works to help eliminate one more challenge that can block the path towards your goal. The icing on the top of the cake is that it’s free too.

*you can find World Clock here: http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/

 

 Lucy

On Sunday, October 19, 2008, over 15,000 people rolled out of bed in the wee hours of the morning to attend CHOC Walk. Of those 15,000 people, forty people were from the DTNtech marketing team! We strolled through Disneyland & Disney California Adventures with families who were touched by CHOC and the classic Disney characters.

With an initial goal to raise at least $500 for the CHOCWalk, I’m happy to say that we surpassed the goal and raised $2,000 in support of the Children’s Hospital of Orange County! Congratuations TEAM!!

Thank you all our supporters who came out to WALK and those who fundraised for this great cause. Amongst those walking in our team included Linh Ho, candidate for the City of Garden Grove Councilmember (check out http://www.votelinhho.com and remember to VOTE!!). The makeup of the group included Key Clubbers from Los Amigos High School, St. Callistus Church, CSULB, CHOC affiliates, and more! We were happy to see the team shirts we printed for other teams at the CHOC Walk, as we are all in this cause together. Thank you to FiveStars Dental, Royal Property Services, and OC BodyWorks for your additional contributions!

DTNtech stood out amongst the crowd in our Jade Green shirts, showing our team spirit for the Children’s Hospital of Orange County!

Each walker received a goodie bag with a fancy DTNtech water bottle, DTNtech tshirt and a CHOC shirt, $50 gift certificates, coupons, and pens inside DTNtech’s new “LIVE TO VOTE, VOTE TO LIVE” Go Green Tote Bag!

^^The DTNtech outreach “Live to VOTE, VOTE to Live” Bag!

Our spiffy new clear & clean DTNtech water bottles

Lucy, Dominic, and Scott model the shirt designed by Liz and printed by DTNtech (of course!)

Elisa is knocked out after the Walk; having to wake up at 5:30am on a Sunday can be grueling when you’re trying to balance a social youngperson’s life!

Here’s a pose by our main benefactors, Serena & David! A post-Walk celebration luncheon was hosted by the DTNtech team. It consisted of David’s famous steak, chicken, salmon, and spicy louisiana hot dogs with the right complements to them all!

Again, thanks to the forty team members who came out last Sunday. We try to be socially responsible and together, we make a difference!