Marketing attached to Halloween Candy!

[DisneyJamieCA]

Sorry I missed the bounce house part, forgive me. Still sound marketing in my book. About $50 in business cards, one rental you would not have had otherwise, and you're money ahead, assuming they rent for about $150 like they do here. 2 rentals would meet your test.

Except they spent almost $500 (after originally claiming $2500), not $50. You would need 3+ rentals to break even and almost 17 rentals to meet the test. Again, I advise you to read the entire thread.

ETA: Assuming a $150 rental

 

[Missy1961]

It's kinda funny we're still talking about this 2 days after Halloween.

But anyway, I've never taken a marketing class. But it makes more sense to me that more people would have held on to a coupon rather than a business card. But what do I know?

 

[bunkkinsmom]

Real Estate Agent here and chiming in!

My neighborhood gets zero trick or treaters. I took my kids to a neighborhood in Oak Ridge, NC where I have sold a couple of houses in the last 18 months and they had like 200 trick or treaters. One of my clients always does hot dogs and hot chocolate with a fire pit in her driveway. They have 5 kids, I have 3, all varying ages. So as all 8 kids went their separate ways, I volunteered to drive the neighborhood and keep an eye on all of them. I would do a loop, stop at the house, have a drink and some candy, do another loop. In that time I met LOTS of neighbors, got to introduce myself as "such and such's Realtor", made conversation, and got a couple of "Oh! They loved you! Hubby and I are thinking of listing in the spring. Do you have a card?" Why yes I do!

Free marketing, free candy, free hot dogs, and got to hang out with really cool people all evening. Word of mouth marketing works. Now... was that the intent of the trip? Nope. Our kids adore each other and were begging to go over there. But it really does work. Just be nice, make conversation, be friendly. It's the best marketing around.

 

[okeydokey]

You all realize that a few days from now the OP will return and tell us how the brilliant plan worked and that the friend got 4 new bookings and people specifically said that they called because they found a business card in the Halloween loot bag.

 

[Missy1961]

You all realize that a few days from now the OP will return and tell us how the brilliant plan worked and that the friend got 4 new bookings and people specifically said that they called because they found a business card in the Halloween loot bag.

I think you're right.

 

[SirDuff]

You all realize that a few days from now the OP will return and tell us how the brilliant plan worked and that the friend got 4 new bookings and people specifically said that they called because they found a business card in the Halloween loot bag.

I think you're underestimating it at 4!

 

[ariel71]

Real Estate Agent here and chiming in!

My neighborhood gets zero trick or treaters. I took my kids to a neighborhood in Oak Ridge, NC where I have sold a couple of houses in the last 18 months and they had like 200 trick or treaters. One of my clients always does hot dogs and hot chocolate with a fire pit in her driveway. They have 5 kids, I have 3, all varying ages. So as all 8 kids went their separate ways, I volunteered to drive the neighborhood and keep an eye on all of them. I would do a loop, stop at the house, have a drink and some candy, do another loop. In that time I met LOTS of neighbors, got to introduce myself as "such and such's Realtor", made conversation, and got a couple of "Oh! They loved you! Hubby and I are thinking of listing in the spring. Do you have a card?" Why yes I do!

Free marketing, free candy, free hot dogs, and got to hang out with really cool people all evening. Word of mouth marketing works. Now... was that the intent of the trip? Nope. Our kids adore each other and were begging to go over there. But it really does work. Just be nice, make conversation, be friendly. It's the best marketing around.

Seems like apples and oranges. Family A was already a client, and it sounds like many of the other families had already heard of you through family A. Real estate agents don't get business by handing out Hershey bars and business cards - there's too much money involved and it is very much a referral-based business. Very different than choosing a bounce house, which most people would probably base on a google search.

 

[Mkrop]

You all realize that a few days from now the OP will return and tell us how the brilliant plan worked and that the friend got 4 new bookings and people specifically said that they called because they found a business card in the Halloween loot bag.

Oh I am sure the phone has been ringing off the hook since this idea was so genius....

 

[LBIJim]

I'm sorry I missed this thread when it was current.

Oh I am sure the phone has been ringing off the hook since this idea was so genius....

No doubt...probably with crank calls. That's what I'd do if my kids received advertising material with their candy. And the "friend's" e-mail or website would be flooded with DIS-unfriendy responses.

And we'd know which house to egg and toilet paper next year.

Pure genius on the "friend's" part.

 

[corndog]

Oh dear. There is "multi-level" hilarity at play in this one.

 

[bunkkinsmom]

Seems like apples and oranges. Family A was already a client, and it sounds like many of the other families had already heard of you through family A. Real estate agents don't get business by handing out Hershey bars and business cards - there's too much money involved and it is very much a referral-based business. Very different than choosing a bounce house, which most people would probably base on a google search.

According to the NAR, about 40% of people choose a Realtor based on a referral. On the opposite side of that, one of the most popular activities taught to Realtors in my area to drum up business is neighborhood farming. Realtors target a neighborhood they want to work in and then spend countless hours and tons of money and effort into making themselves "Known" in the area. I chimed in because the example given sounds VERY MUCH like something I've seen Realtors in this area participate in. In my area, our city is hosting a lot more transplants and we do get quite a bit of play from Google searches just like other businesses. I've gotten business both ways.

Just to clarify, my point is that her time might have been better spent just getting to know people. If I had a friend or knew someone with a bouncy house business, I'd be sure to refer them when the opportunity arose.

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

I honestly don't see what the big deal is with giving this somewhat unorthodox marketing ploy a shot. If it worked, great. If not, at even $2,500.00, which anyone who owns a profitable business could tell you isn't that big of a financial investment really, it certainly wouldn't be the first advertising tactic to fail. What the hell, it's worth a shot. As a parent, I've got better things to spend my time doing than feverishly wringing because someone put a business card for bounce houses in my kids candy bag at Halloween. AFAIC, you use it, or don't, and move on without giving it a second thought. I leave the hyperventilating over this type stuff to the ridiculous "War on Xmas" crowd. It's simply not worth it.

 

[tvguy]

But how much convert to sales. And do they recommend spending $4+ Per potential customer? It seems awful expensive on the rate of return. You want to profit from the effort. Otherwise, it doesn't matter how many read it if they don't act on it.

I guess I may be wrong, my assumption is the only business cost is the business cards because I would assume they would be giving out candy to trick or treaters anyway.

 

[wilkeliza]

I guess I may be wrong, my assumption is the only business cost is the business cards because I would assume they would be giving out candy to trick or treaters anyway.

They are writing the candy off as a business expense so they have to consider it as part of the marketing cost. It also seems like they wouldn't have handed out full size bars if not for the marketing scheme.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I guess I may be wrong, my assumption is the only business cost is the business cards because I would assume they would be giving out candy to trick or treaters anyway.

The earlier claim was that they were writing off the expense. Thus the candy was a business expense and they are spending $4pp (per the original claim which has now been downgraded) in marketing.

 

[tvguy]

The earlier claim was that they were writing off the expense. Thus the candy was a business expense and they are spending $4pp (per the original claim which has now been downgraded) in marketing.

At the very least there were some happy kids. I just know from my involvement with Little League, a lot of small businesses have a lot of money to spend on marketing, and I'm not sure they make the money back, but they do it anyway. We had a lot of trades people (painters, roofers etc) who were one man operations that donated $1,000 to sponsor teams.

 

[wilkeliza]

At the very least there were some happy kids. I just know from my involvement with Little League, a lot of small businesses have a lot of money to spend on marketing, and I'm not sure they make the money back, but they do it anyway. We had a lot of trades people (painters, roofers etc) who were one man operations that donated $1,000 to sponsor teams.

Team sponsorships aren't usually about marketing. That is more community outreach or giving back type things. Yes it is expose but people don't typically treat it like it is a marketing campaign.

 

[Mkrop]

At the very least there were some happy kids. I just know from my involvement with Little League, a lot of small businesses have a lot of money to spend on marketing, and I'm not sure they make the money back, but they do it anyway. We had a lot of trades people (painters, roofers etc) who were one man operations that donated $1,000 to sponsor teams.

Team sponsorships aren't usually about marketing. That is more community outreach or giving back type things. Yes it is expose but people don't typically treat it like it is a marketing campaign.

And when I sign my kid up for LL or some other sport, I know that they are going to walk around with a shirt that says ABC Plumbing or something. When I take my kid TOT I am not expecting to be marketed to