Harp 2.0

I found the links for the new guidelines for the new HARP 2.0 program. The trick is going to be finding a lender that will underwrite directly to the new guidelines. I'll let you know when I find one.

http://www.freddiemac.com/sell/guide/bulletins/pdf/bll1122.pdf
https://www.efanniemae.com/sf/guides/ssg/annltrs/pdf/2011/sel1112.pdf

Facebook Ads - how to make it worth your time.

So, if you're like me and have tried using Facebook Ads, you're probably wondering how to see results.

The best method I've seen is to narrow down the geographic area you are targeting to a neighborhood or maybe a zip code. This way you blanket that specific segment instead of people seeing your ad sporadically. When someone sees your ad 8 times in an hour, they are much more likely to get curious than if they see it once total.

Facebook Event Reminders

A good friend of mine in a band called J. Wride gave me this idea earlier this week. When you change the name of a Facebook event, it sends an update to EVERYONE that has been invited regardless of their RSVP status. We had an event with more than 4k people invited and just changed the event's name to "Concert Tonight" and there went 4000 reminders. Cool huh?!

The +1 button: Is google+ worth it as part of my marketing strategy?

The biggest gripe that I have heard about  trying to incorporate google+ into a marketing strategy is that you can’t have a business page. I can see why people wouldn’t like that — we are used to Facebook where the message coming to us from a company actually comes from the company itself. However, from a marketing standpoint google+ is like gold. We are conditioned to distrust corporations. (If you need evidence of that all I have to say is 99%.) So, on google+ your marketing message has to come from a person! You effectively bypass corporate distrust by mixing in marketing messages with your day to to social status updates. For instance, I do a lot of marketing for mortgages, once a week or so on my google+ page I’ll post something like, “Mortgages rates are the lowest our country has ever seen! If you’ve thought about refinancing, get in touch with me!” Sandwiched between a status about my kid brother’s soccer game and my wife’s latest pinterest tweet, it looks totally organic, natural and trustworthy. Contrast that against what it would look like on a mortgage company’s Facebook page. Google plus in your marketing strategy? Good choice.

A bit of self indulgence. My band’s latest music video.

Wonder what I do in my spare time?

We are also ranked #1 Indie Band in our county at Reverbnation.com

I guess that's a little of me putting my money where my mouth is. 

Marketing vs. Public Relations (a note on social network marketing strategies) Part II

So, you’ve done a ton of work and now you have thousands of followers on Facebook. Now what?
Most people think this is the end goal of a social network marketing strategy; but think of it this way – a blank billboard on the side of the freeway isn’t gonna do any good. That’s exactly what a poorly managed Facebook page or profile is.
For my own marketing strategy, I search out Facebook “friends” much more than I do “fans” for my page. I’ll explain why another day, but unless you are branding a product, I suggest going the friend route.
From here it’s all about making yourself look like the single smartest person anyone knows about whatever topic you are marketing. Post everyday and post insightful things about the topic. After a while, when one of your Facebook contacts has a question about your topic of expertise, they are gonna come to you.

Marketing vs. Public Relations (a note on social network marketing strategies) Part I

Much of the time you hear that social network marketing doesn’t drive sales. Well, according to that mindset there is, by definition, no such thing as social network marketing. It would have to be social network public relations. Marketing is what gets you more sales, more leads, or more customers.
I am here to say, unequivocally, you can use social networks such as Facebook to drive sales, generate leads, and get more customers. It just takes a whole lot more work than people are willing to put in.
Little story. I had a friend that worked for a little boutique, and as little boutiques often do . . . it was struggling. So, the owner put some time and effort into the social networks and last I ran across them they had literally thousands of Facebook fans on their page. Now, the though that probably went through your head just now was “what a success story.”
THAT IS WHERE EVERYONE FALLS APART WITH SOCIAL NETWORK MARKETING!
Thousands of fans is not the end goal of social network marketing, it is merely the first step.
Check back Monday for Step 2.

A note of event marketing

I deal with a lot of musicians and they all want to know the best way to start building a hype. Well, unless you have a buzz going already and there are a few thousand people on your mailing list, and your Facebook page already has a few thousand followers; all of the “cool” marketing strategies like Facebook ads, your own “free” mobile app, cool photos of the band, etc, are really going to do you no good at all.
I was at an open mic last night and every other performer on the stage said something like this. “Hi, my name is __________. I play in a band called _______. We are playing on _________, you should come.” Will anyone actually go to one of those shows expressly because they said that, i doubt it.
Effective marketing strategy – no.
So we went outside and there some posters hung up for an upcoming concert, and my friend said “I see those posters all over, it makes me feel like he’s more legit.” So I asked, “legit enough to go to the show?” she answered in the negative.
Effective marketing strategy – no. (Maybe good PR, but we’ll cover that another day.)
Same thing when you hand out flyers. Most research I’ve done shows that for every 150-200 flyers you hand out, one person comes to the show.
Effective marketing strategy – no.
I think that by now you get the point. I have more than a few friends that are in bands that sold out local and regional shows before there was a big buzz about them. And quite frankly, they built a buzz because they were able to sell out those shows before they had a buzz. Their secret – personally inviting their friends. “I don’t have a lot of friends!” you might say. Well, go make more. The local band with the largest following around here did that. They played at college apartment complexes and house shows and after they were done playing they stuck around and made friends with everyone there! It’s more valuable to have Facebook “friends” on your personal page then it is to have “fans” on your band/business page when you are first starting out.
So that’s the assignment; whether you’re in a band, just started a business, are trying to promote a charity event, whatever it might be. Get out and make a ton of friends. It will your make your life easier and your marketing strategy easier to implement.

Marketing - More than running an ad campaign

What most small business owners don’t understand is that a marketing strategy includes every activity that has to do with making or optimizing income. Advertising, public relations, managing workflows, managing employees, everything that you do as a business is subject to your marketing plan. A marketing strategy is as pointless as runway behind you unless it makes you more money! Facebook pages are great, your logo probably makes you feel cool, the billboard on the side of the freeway makes you feel important, but unless they are making you the money they should that feeling of importance and coolness will disappear.

Stealth Marketing Strategy

Run a PPC ad, but for the graphic use a QR code. Stealth Marketing strategy #1 – go try it.

Who are we?

Gorilla Marketing 3000 is a project aimed at helping people get the word out. Whether it be a marketing strategy for a startup business, or a marketing strategy for a rock band trying to hit it big, or if you are developing a marketing strategy for a local election — that is what we do. We have ideas to help your small marketing budget go as far as possible. If your marketing strategy calls for making t-shirts, or running a facebook ad, or sending out direct mail. If your rock band has a show and you need to find the best marketing strategy to get people to the show, we have been there and done that and know what works the best. If you only have a small budget, you don’t have money to waste on things that aren’t going to work.