Got Opt-Ins? ..Now What??

So, your client ran a promotion with you that contained some sort of sign-up form which offered an "opt-in" -- a mechanism used to allow our audience to signal their interest in receiving additional information from the Advertiser. The individuals who choose to opt-in can then be used to develop permission-based marketing programs by our clients.

The very WORST thing an Advertiser can do is to let these most-qualified and most-interested leads (they responded to the Advertiser's message AND gave them permission to be contacted!) is to let them fade away unused. You wouldn't hang up the phone on someone who called your office and said they wanted to buy something, would you? The more time that passes between a person opting-in to a list and actually being contacted increases the likelyhood they will have forgotten theay actually signed up for the list in the first place and will either immediately opt-out of the first message they receive -- or worse yet -- report the message as SPAM, which can get the Advertiser immediately blacklisted by many email services (like gmail, yahoo, and aol.)

Here is some excellent advice from Kevin Sinclair at How-To B2B Articles on what your client can do to effectively build relationships with their new opt-in audience.

Tip of the Week
Want to cut word count and boost readership in one step? Showcase a Tip of the Week. You can easily brainstorm enough content for six months of weekly newsletters (you need to come up with 24 tips, which you will present weekly.)

Checklists
A good checklist is like a step-by-step how-to. Turn a lengthy advice column into one. Checklists can save a lot of time, and your readers will be delighted to get one.

Before-and-After
Who doesn't like makeovers? This is a great way to interact with clients. Invite them to send in details of whatever needs a makeover: an article, a website page, their wardrobe, then present brief solutions -- or ask for examples of their own in-house makeovers.

Source: How-To B2Barticles. Read the full article here.

Promotional News/Sales Opportunities

Lots of news about new promotional pushes from advertisers. Should spark lots of ideas for VBRs and half-baked ideas to pitch!

Black Dog Ale
Partnering with humane shelters to publicize October as national Adopt-a-Dog Month by adding a splash page to its Web site that offers visitors information about the program and lets them find the addresses of participating human societies in 16 states. The brand, from Spanish Peaks Brewing Co., features the founder's black Lab "Chug" on its packaging and logo.

Boboli
New product push via In-Store Merchandise. George Weston Bakeries is launching a national merchandising program around a new Boboli product that includes recipes, coupons and healthy-living tips in-store.

The company is pushing Boboli 100% Whole Wheat personal size crusts with "Build-a-Better-For-You Pizza" in-store displays starting Oct. 1. Each will feature a child topping a Boboli crust. Recipe take-ones and healthy living tips will be part of the P-O-P offering.

Gillette Pushes Razor in Video Contest
Gillette is challenging college football fans to get their 'game face' on in a new promotion to push its Fusion Power razor.

The company has partnered with former Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn in a sweepstakes that encourages guys to create videos or photos that show their own game face. A grand prize package includes a trip to New York City to meet Quinn.

People can enter at www.gillettegameface.com where they will be directed to join the Gillette GameFace group on Facebook and to check out Brady Quinn's GameFace video with advice on how to create their own.

Gardenburger Hunts for 'Real Man'
Wholesome and Hearty Foods Co. has launched an online contest to find a 'real man' to promote its meatless products. People can nominate themselves or the man in their lives they believe defines the company's official "Real Man" title. The goal behind the campaign is to show that Gardenburgers, a 100% natural meatless product, aren't just for vegetarian or women, but for men, too.

A Promotion of Operatic Proportions

An article in today's NY Times spoke of a promotion run by their opera company that sells 200 prime seats to every weeknight performance for just $20 each. The idea to appeal to those who might be interested in attending the opera by lowering the cost to attend, thereby lessening the risk of trying something new.

From the article...
Last week, the opera house announced that it would sell 200 seats for every weeknight performance for just $20 each. Tickets for these seats, which would normally sell for $100, go on sale two hours before curtain time. On Tuesday, the day of the announcement, 160 tickets were sold in 20 minutes. The remaining 40 were sold out by 7:10 p.m.

Next door at Lincoln Center, the New York City Opera is in its second season of “Opera-for-All,” selling every seat in the house for $25 on eight evenings over the course of the season. Then there is City Center, where the third season of the Fall for Dance festival, with all tickets priced at $10, concluded Sunday. And the Off Broadway Signature Theater Company, which specializes in American playwrights, is selling every seat at $15 during the eight-week scheduled run of each show through the spring.

This could be a very effective promotion for any of our local theater companies -- Broadway Series, BalletMet, Catco, etc.

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VBRs & HALF-BAKED:

• Catco has an $11.50 @ 11 program theatre-goers who want to see a play mid-week (Wednesday) and mid-day (11 am) at a great price ($11.50).
  
• Use our Keyword (MixWord/FanWord) programs to tag the end of commercial spots and link site visitors to a promotional where they can buy the event tickets for $9.71 or $14.60 (depending on the station). This offers not just a great deal to the listener, but an excellent way to track performance of the on-air offer.
  
• Why not sell 50 tickets at half price, rather than giving away 10 for free?
  
• Tie event advertisers into the Mix Marketplace -- instead of giving away tickets on the air, sell them for a fraction of their face value thru the 50% off site. The promotional mentions connected to the Mix Marketplace package most likely totals much more than they would have received via live contest mentions.
  
• I know, I know -- you're saying "but the client WANTS on-air contesting!" My response is to say the want RESULTS, they just think the on-air contest is the way to get them.
  
• Too often, things are valued by want you pay for them. Giving away free tickets via contesting costs people nothing to receive the prize. Do you really think the station's "prize pigs" -- those 5 or 6 people who seem to win EVERYTHING (and frequently have NO idea what they won when they call in) -- are going to use the tickets? A lot of people simply don't bother to enter contests because they have the attitude of "oh, I never win those things." BUT, offering an excellent value to those listeners who truly want to take advantage of the ofer will go much further in delivering those the results our clients are seeking.

Whirlpool Spins Love & Laundry Social Events

See the linked article for details, but here's the gist of it...

Whirlpool is taking its laundry appliances to the social scene by hosting Spin Cycle events that will give singles a chance to meet, mingle and have some good clean fun while playing laundry-themed games that can earn them Whirlpool prizes.

The first of four Whirlpool Spin Cycle event loads up in Atlanta on Sept. 7 at the brand's Insperience Studio, a showroom featuring Whirlpool appliances. Others will hit restaurants, lounges and unique locations in Minneapolis and Charlotte, NC, before the cycle ends on Oct. 9 in Dallas.

Whirlpool hopes to connect singles to its brand through social events. Relationship expert Dr. Pepper Schwartz who penned the relationship guide Finding Your Perfect Match will host each singles mixers event. Playing off of the age-old, romanticized notion of people finding their match at the Laundromat, each Spin Cycle will feature laundry-related games. For instance, Find Your Sole Mate matches couples based on socks, and a Laundry Olympics tests who can perform timed chores the fastest, such as folding bed sheets blindfolded. Winners receive Whirlpool Fabric Fresheners and copies of Finding Your Perfect Match.

Throughout the evening, consumers will get to tinker with the brand's new suite of appliances aimed to fit their lifestyles; whether a bachelor doing mini-loads in a city apartment (Duet Sport system) or a family doing several loads of laundry each day (Cabrio system).

Each event is geared toward reaching second-time singles (divorcees) and singles over 30 because of their level of disposable income, Whirlpool said.

Whirlpool paired with relationship Web site Perfectmatch.com to draw Perfectmatch.com's relationship-minded members to the event in each region. E-mail blasts were sent to the Web site's members, and some event-goers will receive a free Perfectmatch.com membership.

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VBRs & HALF-BAKED:

• A chance to create "It's Just Laundry"?
• Involve 'big box' retailers?
• What about the local 'suds & duds' type places?
• I've seen a internet cafe / laundromat combination...
• Whirlpool's focus on 'second-time singles' and 30+ singles match well with Mix audience

EBay & Family Circle Small Space Design Contest

EBay and Family Circle magazine have joined forces on a contest that looks for a resourceful consumer who can redesign a small space using only items purchased on eBay.

Entrants must submit, in 250 words or less, their ideas about how to creatively redesign a small space using items purchased on eBay.com. A before picture must be included and the space to be redesigned can not exceed 150 square feet.

The eBay & Family Circle's Designing Small Spaces Contest can be entered at FamilyCircle.com/smallspace or at eBay.com/smallspace.

Click here for the full article

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VBRs & HALF-BAKED:

• In what ways might we apply this to existing clients?
  
• Can we pair a prospect with an existing client?
  
• What if we took this concept outside of the home
  -- Garage makeover? Garden? Cubicle?

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Jeep to Muddy Up Consumers at State Fair

Consumers desperately searching through a three-foot-deep pool of slushy, slippery mud to find sticks may drive home a new Jeep. It's the brand's latest stunt to engage consumers and get them digging for a chance to win the grand prize.

On Sept. 29, the start of the State Fair of Texas, up to 120 randomly selected consumers who register at JeepStickInTheMudChallenge.com will participate in the Jeep Stick in the Mud Challenge to win the brand's first four-door Jeep Wrangler.
As reported in PromoXtra By Andrew Scott

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VBRs & HALF-BAKED:

• Columbus has very active/passionate Classic Car content
• Concept for presence at Ohio State Fair? Tailgate?
• Doesn't have to be 'muddy' -- what about Hummers? Lambos? VW?
• Keep economy cars running around a track to see who gets the best gas mileage?
• Could you do it with motorcycles? Bicycles? Running shoes?

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