Helping Grocers Increase Sales of International Foods

July 24th, 2008 • Kathy Crosett • 0 comments • Related • Filed Under

If your grocer clients need to boost sales in their international aisles, check out the results of Progressive Grocer’s recent survey on what Hispanic consumers are buying. Here are the top grocery products purchased by this demographic:

  • Rice 33%
  • Tomatoes 33%
  • Beans 18%
  • Garlic 16%

Hispanics don’t just eat their traditional diet though. The survey also found that nearly ¾’s of Hispanics enjoy Italian cuisine and Hispanic youth frequently ask for chicken nuggets.

Are your grocery clients advertising the right products?

[Source: “What are Hispanics Eating? Unilever Finds Out,” Progressive Grocer, 7.14.2008]

Escalators: The New Elevator?

July 23rd, 2008 • Jessica Helinski • 0 comments • Related • Filed Under

The elevator speech is an old-school staple of selling. The brief why-you-should-buy-from-me speech is likely a part of every salesperson’s arsenal of business development tools, but a new quick pitch is on the scene. Inspired by the popular social-networking site Twitter, the “Twitpitch” is the latest way to sell yourself in a hurry. The Twitpitch is the brainchild of social media pioneer Stowe Boyd, who feels that in these times of information overload, pitches need to be even faster – more like the length of an escalator trip than an elevator ride.

But how can you condense your agency’s value into 20 words? BusinessWeek writer John Tozzi writes, “…the message should start with the people behind the product.” Gather employees together to brainstorm what is at the foundation of your business and which words best communicate that to clients, who may be strapped for time, overloaded with information, or just tired of hearing speeches. Need some inspiration? Tozzi recounts the story of Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, who approached investors and pitched their Google idea in merely eight words (check out Tozzi’s article to see what they were)!

Federal Reserve’s Partnership for Progress Means Opportunity

July 23rd, 2008 • Kathy Crosett • 0 comments • Related • Filed Under

The national business headlines may contain dire warnings about big losses for big banks, but there’s no shortage of business folks who want to start new banks. The Federal Reserve is so interested in helping new banks, especially minority-owned institutions, that it recently launched its Partnership for Progress program.

In discussing the program, the Fed notes there are three major phases to a bank’s business cycle:

Business Launch – management and planning before the bank begins business

Transition – operations for years 1-5

Maximizing Shareholder Value – operations for year 5 and beyond

As part of this program, the Fed has also provided peer data on operating statistics for minority-owned banks, by size, across the country. If a new minority-owned bank has opened in your market, share the data on this program and pitch a new ad campaign.

[Source: Federal Reserve release, June 2008]

Growth of Concierge Medicine Means Opportunity

July 22nd, 2008 • Kathy Crosett • 1 comment • Related • Filed Under

With physicians facing potential cuts in Medicare payments and increased costs related to health information privacy and insurance claims processing it’s no surprise that some are looking in new directions to raise revenue. One business model garnering increased attention is concierge or boutique medicine. These physicians privately contract with patients and usually don’t accept insurance. While the specific delivery of services varies, in general, patients pay a fixed annual fee and in exchange, the physician is available for preventive and routine health care often through a mix of office visits, telephone calls and email.

The benefit to physicians is the chance to practice medicine instead of running an insurance claims business and the benefit to patients is personalized medicine.

What’s the drawback? At least one physician publication notes it’s difficult to develop a good marketing campaign.

Are there physicians in your marketlooking to shift to concierge medicine?

Sources:

DeJesus, Jose. “The Pros and Cons of Concierge Medicine,” PhysicianEntrepreneur.com, 12.16.2007

Harrington, Kate. “Concierge medicine gaining popularity in Austin,” AustinBusinessJournal, 7.11.2008

Using Radio to Reach Voters

July 21st, 2008 • Kathy Crosett • 0 comments • Related • Filed Under

Media reports have emphasized the importance of TV and online marketing in the political arena. Should your political clients spend money on other traditional forms of media such as radio? A recent study released by the University of Missouri indicates it could be a worthwhile expenditure for the following reasons:

  • Radio can be less expensive than TV
  • Radio ads often appeal to specific demographics such as men, young consumers and religious men and women

The study designer also points out that since radio stations often don’t run ads from competing candidates or interest groups, the value of the message remains more powerful.

Consider adding radio to the media mix in advance of the fall election season.

University of Missouri News Bureau release, July 10, 2008

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