Marketing Ideas

Toy stores have to market to two distinct audiences-children, who are the end-users, and parents, who are the purchasers. Having only one marketing strategy won’t prove to be very effective for your toy store, as you’ll only be reaching a portion of your market. It’s best to use a mix of mediums and messages to attract children and their parents. At least one of these suggestions could be a great choice for your toy store.

1. Wish lists– Every child has a list of toys they want for Christmas or their birthday. Encourage your customers to bring their child in to create a formal wish list, be it on paper or electronic (like a bridal registry). This is a fun process for the child, and it gets customers in your store at-least twice (once to register, and once to purchase). They can distribute the list among family and friends, which could bring you even more customers.

1. Birthday specials– Similarly, every child likes to feel special on their birthday. Print vinyl decals to display at your checkout station that let parents know you’ll email them a special coupon on their child’s birthday. The child can come in and take their pick of merchandise which they’ll receive for free, or at least discounted. This makes the child happy, and the parents even happier, because they’re saving money.

1. Used toy drives– Show you care for the community by hosting used toy drives in your store or even around town. By donating gently-used toys, potential customers will then have the need for a replacement, and since they’re already in your store, they’re likely to buy! If they need a little extra encouragement, offer them a discount coupon for donating.

1. Parenting seminars– Here’s another great way to attract the parents. Host lectures and seminars in your store that parents will want to attend. Make sure to feature these classes in your store with large, easy-to-read banners so parents will know when and where the classes are. Use your employee’s knowledge, or even work with your vendors to inform parents of the latest products for child safety, current recalls, or even fun ideas for party planning. Of course you’ll need to provide child care during these events, but this is an advantage for you. What parent takes their child to a toy store and doesn’t buy them something?

1. New toy release events– There’s an “it” toy every season. From Furbys to Tickle-Me-Elmo, toy manufacturers work very hard to create a “gotta-have it” mentality in the minds of children, and their parents! Use this to your advantage. When the hot new toy is about to be released, throw a party in your store. Customers will come hoping to be the first person in the area to get their hands on the new toy. Print window clings to display in your window showing pictures of the toy and when it’s going to be released, so that customers will be well-prepared for the launch.

Michael Allen works as a Director of Marketing in Boston, Massachusetts. He has worked with both large companies and small local businesses for over 20 years. His vast experience in the field of marketing positions him as an expert in helping businesses expand by using marketing tactics.

As a seasoned expert in Marketing and Branding, Michael has a wealth of knowledge in the use of car signs and retail signs. In his articles, he covers tips and techniques for effective use of vinyl decals, vinyl banners, and window clings for small businesses.

With people becoming more health-conscious, the market for vitamins and dietary supplements has increased significantly. Customers are given an exciting array of choices, with many different brands competing with each other and offering better products at fairer rates.

People use vitamins and supplements to lead healthy lives, with greater energy and vitality, improved memory and strength, and improved nutritional quality. Nearly everyone makes use of vitamins and supplements these days.

Manufacturers of vitamins and supplements face stiff competition because there are so many firms offering various combinations of products for the target customers. It is imperative that your advertisements be unique and informative, inducing customers to buy and use your vitamins and supplements. The advertisements have to be consistent and convey the message intended to the customers to choose your brand over others. You can do this by listing the benefits of using your brand and may attract customers by offering freebies that are useful.

Some Marketing Ideas for Vitamins and Supplements

• Infomercials on TV, which if implemented correctly, can have a great ROI. It helps people become familiar with your brand and will help them choose your brand the next time they buy vitamin or supplements.

• Having advertisements appear in health-oriented magazines as well as other magazines. They have to be frequent, as repetition is the essential ingredient to advertising success.

• You can have brochures of your vitamins and supplements be made available in the local gyms and beauty parlors and spas, clinics, and supermarkets, etc.

• Forming partnerships with pharmacies is another marketing idea. Having signboards and fliers advertising your products and brand name can influence many customers.

• Using medical representatives to entice practicing doctors to prescribe your brand of vitamins to patients.

• Using celebrities to endorse the vitamins and supplements. This has a very high ROI, as many fans will follow through.

• Organizing health camps and awareness camps and offering the services of doctors for free can be very effective ways of marketing your products.

• Using trade shows to promote your brand name and products.

• Giving out educational leaflets in schools and colleges can influence some customers to try your products.

• Using MLM to sell your products can be successful, too.

• Develop catch phrases that will stay in the minds of customers and bring uniqueness to your products.

• Opting to have referral programs with affiliate services. This may be very advantageous. You may have a website to promote your products, too.

These are a few marketing ideas for vitamins and supplements. There are firms that offer services as well as products to help run a successful business.

As the weather warms, school gets out and round outside really start to crank up, we thought we’d share a few ideas on interesting ideas to market your indoor golf facility that we’ve seen others doing:

Game Improvement
Outdoor instruction simply cannot match the feedback and analysis you can get in a controlled environment loaded with sensors and video equipment. We’ve seen quite a few facilities marking the science of game improvement to get players to book hours on the simulators – with or without a pro giving lessons.

Summer Camp
Not every kid feels comfortable at a course or driving range. Some have difficulty with heat and allergies. Offering an indoor golf camp is a fun an interesting way to learn the game. It can also be a great way to drive known bookings around low volume hours. Make sure you check into any special laws or licensing needed for running a camp.

Birthday Parties
This is a bit of a twist on the summer camp idea in that it is geared towards kids, just not for as long of a duration. You can offer a special for parents to play on other simulators while their kids attend the party.

Introduction to Golf
Target folks who would like to learn, but may be intimidated by going out on the course. Offer a spouses special for your regular players. Help them get started in the game and you can potentially grow a new base.

Leagues, Contests and Charity Events
Offer special events to draw in players. Contests like closest to the pin and long drive get folks in the door, but you’ll probably have a little work to do to keep them there.

Fitting and Demo Days
Partner up with your local sales reps. Offer your customers a chance to come hit all the new clubs in one place. You may even be able to get a piece of the action on equipment sales if all goes well.

Bundle Deals
If you have food and beverage capabilities, you can offer a combo package of food, drink and play time on the machines. Do a promotion to keep cool at the hottest part of the day and come in for a round and a drink.

Rain Checks
It rains during the summer and you can offer a place to play when other courses can’t. Give a “Rain Check” coupon to local clubs to let players come to your facility and get a discount when it rains.

There’s an old science fiction story I remember reading as a kid. I think it might have been by Asimov, and called something like “the greatest hunter in the world”.

Anyway, the gist of the story was the protagonist was a harmless, chubby fellow who was setting off to try a shoot some monstrous alien thing that was all fangs, claws and bad-attitude.

It turns out his secret, the thing earning him the title “greatest hunter” was he’d just dress up like his prey’s favourite meal and let the buggers come to him so he could shoot them.

Not a particularly sophisticated idea. Not a very sophisticated plot, either.

But then, it doesn’t have to be… and nor does your marketing.

See, one of the questions I get thrown at me all the time is how to write “killer” copy so they can write the almost mythical “killer” sales letter and flog their wares to a list of gazillions.

Well, I hate to be the one to tell you this… but it ain’t that kind of party. I mean, it is possible. I worked with a client last year on a 30,000 piece mailing that turned a £200,000 or so ROI.

But… it was a 22-page sales letter, it took me a LOT of work to write it, and, without banging my own drum too loudly, I am a pro copywriter who’s studied this stuff for a long time AND who STILL has his fair share of flops (Dan Kennedy allegedly described me as “the best copywriter in Europe”. I don’t know if he really said it or not, and I don’t know if it’s true even if he did say it… but I wouldn’t presume to argue with the man).

So you can learn to play in that kind of game… but it’s not going to happen any time soon, and, if you just want to know how to write for your own business, it’s really not the level of expertise you need.

Sledgehammers and cracking nuts come to mind.

And by far the easiest way for the vast majority of business owners to increase their sales and profits dramatically is by doing two simple things:

1. Letting prospects, customers and clients come to them. It’s called “lead generation marketing” and all it means is you’re putting your “stuff” where their eyeballs are looking and getting them to raise their hands and say “Yeah, tell me more!”
2. Sending them simple, conversational and informal emails, letters, postcards and the like and selling the softly-softly way over time. And you keep sending them stuff until they buy, die, or tell you to stop.

It’s not a million miles away from what the “greatest hunter” was doing, right?

Right.

I can promise you this: if you’re going out there now and somehow trying to convince people they need to buy your stuff, you’re making life a lot harder than it needs to be.