Business Day Thursday: Your Business Cards On Steroids

Good Morning Everybody,

I've been working these last few days on my new Lightroom 3 presentation for the PhotoProExpo Summer School happening in Lexington, Kentucky this weekend.  Man, the more you dig under the hood of LR3, the more cool things you discover.  I've already mentioned a few upcoming Technique Tuesday episodes to show you some exciting and cool tricks never before seen anywhere - really, no kidding. As usual, stay tuned.

Oh, and one more quick update – as of yesterday WE HAVE LIGHTROOM 3 RUNNING ON A NETWORK!!! Yes, it’s true and it works like a charm.  So, where can you find out how to make it work on your network?  Be sure to tune in next week for a special edition of Technique Tuesday: “Jailbreaking Lightroom 3 – How To Run LR3 On A Network”. 

Hey, just a quick update on my Photowalk - it looks like we are all filled up. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I’m sure we will have a few attendees that will have a change of plans before the big day. So, if you still want to join us, don't lose hope.  Just jump on the waiting list - we only have one on the list right now.  I feel confident you will still have a good chance of joining us. 

I mentioned on Tuesday, that I had briefly experimented with shooting my Canon 7D tethered into Lightroom 3 and mentioned how easy it was. Well, I plan to amp it up a notch.  Yesterday I ordered 32 feet of USB cable to really give this tethered shooting experience a real work out. 

You can't just order regular USB cable.  I had to order a booster cable too otherwise the inherent data loss over that long of a distance would give you unpredictable data transmission results over these longer distances. I'll give you the full details as soon as I'm finished testing and I'll give you the specifics of the cables I ordered too.  Let me see if all this stuff works first ;~)

OK gang, time to get on with today's exciting, scintillating, profit building, success proven Business Day Thursday.  Here we go...

Your Business Cards On Steroids

I've been kind of kicking it back and forth to see if I wanted to pass along this information.  But the more I thought about it, I really thought is was a good idea. So here goes.

Hit the "Read More..." link below for today's post.

A few weeks ago I contacted our tree trimming service to take care of some dubious hanging limbs in a few trees on our property.  I had used the same gentlemen before because of his astoundingly fantastic service and cleanup.  The last time he was here with his crew, they worked two days on the trees.  After they finished Jim Allen and his crew disappeared into thin air.  There was not a blade of grass out of place and nary a piece of sawdust to be found anywhere - it was simply amazing the professionalism Allen's Tree Service brought to the job.

OK, that was my big plug for Allen's Tree Service, so let's get on with the rest of the story.  Mr. Allen stopped by about two weeks ago so we could discuss what I needed to have cleaned up around the property.  We had a nice visit, made the arrangements to get the service scheduled and said our goodbyes to each other.

As Jimmy left, he handed me his business card.  It was your standard business card - on the front, that is.  He turned the card over to show me it was full of offers from local merchants.  You know, 2 for 1, 10-15% off,  buy one get one free, etc.

I took a close look at the offers and although some didn't amount to much and I will never use them, there were still 3 or 4 that I WOULD possibly use.  Jimmy told me the offers were good up to the date shown on the card which was next May! He also told me that they were good for more than just one visit.  I could use the card as many times as I wanted up to May of next year.

I'm thinking, "Wow!  What a deal.  I'm keeping Jimmy's card in my wallet.  You just never know when it will come in handy." And there folks is the rest of the story.  Jimmy gave me his business card, a business card that I plan always to keep with me, a business card that always let's me know who gave it to me every time I use it.

Marketing experts talk about advertising being "sticky". How long do you remember the ad and the offer?  This simple little business card is about the "stickiest" piece of advertising I seen in a long while.  Does it work for wedding photographers?  I have to say definitely maybe.  Depending on your market niche, where you are in your business growth and brand building, it just may be a wonderful business building opportunity for you.

I called the contact number for KM Publishing on the back of the card and talked to John, the genius behind the concept. He faxed me the whole fascinating story of how well it works for the merchants who love it and the business owners giving out the cards.  For anyone living in the Cincinnati / Northern Kentucky area wanting to contact John about business cards, he can be reached at 859-307-6564.

I'm thinking there must be other similar business card publishers offering this same kind of service in other parts of the country and the world. You'll have to check in your own area.  Hey, you may even want your own business doing the same thing.  John can tell you how ;~)

I said in the beginning, that this was going to be an interesting post today.  I hope you enjoyed it.  Even as I sit here and wrap up the post, my mind is spinning just thinking about how to expand on this entire idea.

Uhmmm.... maybe working with your vendor buddies, cross pollinate with several of them, and put your own card together featuring all of your offers on the back of the card.  Oh, this doesn't have to replace your current business card either.  Keep your regular card on hand and use your "offer" card as an addition to your regular card.  Hey, you just want your potential clients to have your contact information with them at all times, right? The "offer" card may do that pretty effectively.

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Hey gang, that's it for me today.  Be sure to stop back for tomorrow's Post, "What I'd Like To See In Lightroom 4".  Hope to see ya' then.

Adios, David