SalemGlobal Staff at Stand Up New York Comedy Club
Posted by Salem Global on Jul 29, 2010
SalemGlobal Staff on the stage of Stand Up NY Comedy Club in the Upper West Side on Broadway at 78th street.
From left to right : Wandrille Lefebvre, Raphi Salem, Nicholas Ngac, Edan Shertzer, Zaffer Savas and Aryeh Landowne.
Raphi on stage with Stand Up NY staff. From left to right : Raphi Salem, Gabe Waldman and Dani Zoldan
Website Marketing New York City, New York Mets, Armstrong’s Tour De France, Non-Profits Profiting: What your business and non-profit can learn from loyalty
Posted by Salem Global on Jul 27, 2010
So I am headed to the NY Mets baseball game tonight and each person I tell this to asks me the same thing… “How’s your arm? They might need you as a relief pitcher. Or maybe a starting one.” I answer that I am a better hitter than pitcher. To which they reply, “well then they could use a few hits too.” OUCH. Are there any Mets fans out there? Who actually like the team? (Shout outs to Alan Berkson of www.InfoManage.net – for all of your outsourced IT needs – thanks for the tickets, and to Bruce Stark of www.beaconpaint.com 371 Amsterdam Ave, UWS NYC. Bruce has as his profile picture on Facebook a picture himself in a Mets uniform after he takes a swing. Not sure if its baseball or softball but it looks cool. He will be joining me tonight at Citi Field. I actually missed my softball game this past Sunday. These 90 degree mornings burn out – literally – the older guys.) It takes a lot to be a Met fan. Someone I know said to me once upon a time that if I grew up on Long Island, I HAD to be a Met fan. He asked, “Where’s your loyalty?” With Steinbrenner dying and having paid hundreds of millions of dollars to create and retain a team that has won so many pennants and World Series, the Yankees organization has their act together. Unfortunately, the Mets haven’t had the billionaire budget or possibly the marketing smarts to retain a team or a fan base to make them contenders. I mean, when was the last time they won anyway? I remember the 69′ Mets, but for some reason, the orange and blue color scheme isn’t bringing up so many fond memories. (Ok – now I have cheated and am reminded that pitcher Tom Seaver was the 1969 Cy Young Award winner, Keith Hernandez was the 1987 Gold Glove award winner and a few others were Mets albeit briefly.)
The point is that the Mets have not thrown in the towel. They did indeed win two World Series titles and fans for the most part are loyal. We had a discussion last week whether a salary cap should be introduced in baseball. Would players be motivated by fame and glory without the fortune? I think you should get paid what you are worth. But then again, who is to say that capping will decrease the advancement of the sport or not. Will players not try harder without the financial motivation? I don’t think we will ever get a controlled fair answer.
Which leads to wondering whether my friend Robert Remin is correct in saying that “no one cares about the Tour De France.” Last week I wrote about Lance Armstrong and though he is not a rock star football player, he still is a huge celebrity, especially after dating Sheryl Crow and Kate Hudson. Armstrong, regardless of whether he is a “douchebag” or not (what some people say alleging that he used steroids to win all of his 7 Tours) is an amazing individual and athlete considering the fact that PLENTY of other people use drugs to win at sports. But how many undergo cancer, cancer treatment, live to tell the world about it and then start non-profit organizations that raise hundreds of millions of dollars toward cancer research. (www.LiveStrong.com) The fact that Team Radio Shack had the number 23 on its back throughout the tour honoring the 23 million people who battle cancer in this country says to me that Armstrong is doing good in this world. He uses Twitter to get his message out.
Which leads me to remind you all of an amazing partner over the past few years. Since I met www.EvasVillage.org several years ago, I have come to learn that they are amazing at feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, medicating the sick and treating the addicted. Eva’s Village, located in Paterson, NJ started out small and grew and grew to not only work with the local poor and hungry, but have branched out to help thousands and thousands on the streets. Year after year, they too “stick with it” and do incredible charity work. Please consider a donation to their organization this year. In addition to standard SEO practices and blogging, our strategy for them has been interactive press releases and they have profited from this year after year.
So what has your business or non-profit learned from the above? First – loyalty rules. Get a customer and/or supporter, nurture them, and they will contribute for life. Second. Use the power of the Internet and social media to reach new audiences and stay in touch with them. Want to know more about internet marketing for your business or non-profit, email me at raphis@salemglobal.com, call my office at 212-993-5828 or visit www.SalemGlobal.com for more information. The summer is half over and that means that I am going to be even busier once the school year rolls around.
Eva’s Village, Paterson, NJ Anti-Poverty Charity Announces Second Annual 5K Walk/Run
Posted by Christopher.Skyi on Jul 23, 2010
Eva’s Village, (http://www.EvasVillage.org) a Paterson, NJ Anti-Poverty Charity provides a new way for the community to help beat poverty in New Jersey with their second annual 5K fun walk/run, titled “Journey of Hope”
Paterson, NJ (PRWEB) July 23, 2010
Eva’s Village, Paterson, NJ, provides a new way for the community to help beat poverty in New Jersey with their second annual 5K fun walk/run, titled “Journey of Hope”.
On Saturday, September 25, 2010, Eva’s Village will provide a way for many small donors to get involved in helping the poor of New Jersey by holding their second annual “Journey of Hope”, a community 5K Walk/Run. Registration is just $20 for adults and $10 for children. Eva’s Village is hoping participants will ask family and friends to add more small donations of $20, $50 or more to support their effort.
Sister Gloria Perez, Executive Director of Eva’s Village, says, “$20 will go farther than you can possibly imagine to help the poor!” Consider that at Eva’s Village:
- $20.00 will provide a hot lunch for FOUR hungry people
- $20.00 will provide a winter hat and gloves for TWO very cold homeless people
- $40.00 will provide fruit and vegetables for TWENTY families living in the Hope Residence at Eva’s Village
- $40.00 will provide a week’s worth of diapers for TEN infants living in the Hope Residence
- $60.00 will provide a cup of coffee for more than TWO THOUSAND homeless men and women
- $100.00 will provide 3 days of complete meals for TWENTY homeless women
Dale Calvert, a board member at Eva’s Village, says, “The first Journey of Hope for Eva’s Village, was held last year at Garret Mountain Reservation in Woodland Park, and it was a wonderful day for the entire family — we had over 350 people, which was a tremendous turnout for our first Walk/Run!” Mr. Calvert hopes this year’s event will provide twice the number of participants and donations.
By participating in the Eva’s Village 5K Walk/Run, participants can personally improve the lives of people in their own communities by giving the poor the resources they need to achieve self-sufficiency.
Sister Gloria says, “Poverty is no longer the face of a stranger, but perhaps the face of your neighbor. The numbers of people in need are climbing. This is not some far off, future reality, the need is right now, and in your own community. That’s why I invite you to join us on the Journey of Hope for Eva’s Village.”
To sign up as an individual, join a team or start a team, simply register today at http://www.evasvillage.org/journeyofhope or call Eva’s Village Journey of Hope at: (973)897-1261. Then challenge others to support your effort with their own contributions.
Eva’s Village is a comprehensive New Jersey anti-poverty organization located in Paterson that covers the complete continuum of care for the poor. Their mission is full circle. They feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, treat the addicted and provide medical care to the poor with respect for the human dignity of each individual. Because of the recent recession Eva’s Village has seen an increase in those seeking their help. In November 2009 the unemployment rate was 10.3% in New Jersey, 12.4% in Passaic County where Paterson is located and 17.8% in Paterson. During 2009, a total of 135,314 hot lunches were served at Eva’s Village to the poor. This is a 20% increase from 2007. On 15-20 days each month last year, they served over 400 meals.
Model anti-poverty charities like Eva’s Village don’t shy away from the challenge. They do more, so they need to ask for more help from their donors. Yet, in today’s troubled economy, who hasn’t thought to themselves, “I’m lucky I can spare $20 let alone a big donation to a charity”. That’s why Eva’s Village is offering new ways for small donors to help the poor. Donna Fico, Chief Marketing Officer at Eva’s Village says, “We hold an annual gala and golf outing, and our donors at these events are incredibly generous, but these are expensive events with limited capacity and we have many volunteers who would like to do more for the poor if we will just give them a way to help.”
Register now to walk or run or simply to support the Journey of Hope 5K Walk/Run for Eva’s Village: http://www.evasvillage.org/journeyofhope
For more information, call Eva’s Village Journey of Hope at: (973)897-1261.
Eva’s Village feeds the hungry, shelters the homeless, treats the addicted and provides free medical and dental care for the poor with respect for the human dignity of each individual. Founded in 1982, Eva’s Village is now one of the most comprehensive and respected anti-poverty programs in the state of New Jersey and has helped hundreds of men, women and families find new purpose in life.
This press release has been distributed by SalemGlobal Internet Interactive Public Relations. Based in New York City, SalemGlobal, optimizes websites to increase donations for non profit organizations, increase traffic from search engines, provides lead generation, and improves conversion of site visitors to buyers. Other services include general website marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), ecommerce solutions, content management systems, website hosting, web design and maintenance. For more information, please contact CEO Raphi Salem at 646-217-4733.
New Jersey Anti-poverty Charity Announces Team Building Opportunities for Corporate Volunteers to Help Meet Increasing Need.
Posted by Christopher.Skyi on Jul 23, 2010
Eva’s Village (http://www.evasvillage.org), Paterson, NJ, creates “Bond, Boost, and Build” effort for corporate volunteers to help meet demand for anti-poverty services as donations and foundation grants decline.
Paterson, NJ (PRWEB) July 23, 2010
Eva’s Village, the well-known Paterson, NJ anti-poverty nonprofit, describes a “perfect storm” of declining donations during a time of increasing need among the hungry, homeless and poor.
In a survey conducted in March 2009, The Council on Foundations reported that 62 percent of the 430 foundations surveyed, expect to reduce their grant making this year. Eva’s Village has received notification from numerous foundations that they are not distributing funds at this time because they are redirecting interests elsewhere or because funds have 
been allocated for the year.
Coincidentally, The Center for Non-Profits conducted an online survey of New Jersey Non-Profits in February 2010. Similar to the previous year, they reported that 64% of the responding organizations saw an increase in the demand for their services in 2009 and expect the trend to continue in 2010. Eva’s Village alone experienced a 20% increase in the hungry and homeless coming to Eva’s Kitchen for a hot lunch over the past two years (since 2007). Eva’s Village also reports an increase in the poor and homeless seeking free medical and dental care at the Eva’s Village Primary Care Clinic.
Despite detecting a decline in giving, Eva’s Village is building 50 units of affordable housing, and expanding Eva’s Kitchen and Eva’s Primary Care Clinic to meet the increasing demand.
Sister Gloria Perez, Executive Director of Eva’s Village, notes that the Eva’s Village mission of feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, treating the addicted and providing medical care for the poor has never been driven by donations, but by need. Donna Marie Fico, Chief Marketing Officer at Eva’s Village remains hopeful. She reports that during the current economic downturn, Eva’s Village has been increasingly proactive in employing new fundraising strategies.
Noting that many corporations and foundations were decreasing the funds distributed to charity, Eva’s Village created the “Bond, Boost, and Build” program. This highly successful team building effort for the employees of New Jersey corporations offers tours of Eva’s Village and volunteering in Eva’s Kitchen, a NJ soup kitchen serving a nutritious lunch to more than 350 homeless and working poor individuals daily.
More new efforts at Eva’s Village aim to reach donors and volunteers able to participate at a modest level. A 5K fun walk/run was created last year and deemed a success. Titled the “Journey of Hope”, the second annual walk/run will be held on September 25, 2010 at Garret Mountain Reservation, Woodland Park (West Paterson), NJ. Ms. Fico notes that the event drew participants from a new donor demographic, increased the participation of smaller businesses, and enlisted the help of the youth in the area.
Eva’s Village has also enlisted the help of a Volunteer Coordinator, and is adding another fundraising event titled “Behind the Seams”. This fashion show, featuring the Robert Graham Collection was suggested by two Eva’s Village supporters who are cosponsoring the event; Sal Lauretta for Men, Midland Park, andBottagra Restaurant, Hawthorne. The fashion show will be on June 7, 2010 at Bottagra Restaurant (call 973-523-6220 ext. 235 for more information).
Ms. Fico says, “It is important during this time of economic uncertainty that we put our resources to maximum use and that we be creative and efficient in delivering our programs as well as supporting them.” She reports that as one of the most respected, progressive and effective anti-poverty organizations in the state of New Jersey, Eva’s Village receives high marks for efficiency, including its third consecutive Four-Star rating by Charity Navigator indicating that Eva’s Village “Exceeds industry standards and outperforms most charities in its Cause” (Charity Navigator).
For more information on Eva’s Village and any of its upcoming events, email Donna Fico, Chief Marketing Officer at Donna.Fico@evasvillage.org or call (973) 523-6220 Ext. 230.
Originally a New Jersey soup kitchen, Eva’s Village was founded in 1982 by Msgr. Vincent E. Puma in response to the increasing incidence of homelessness in his Paterson, NJ parish. But Msgr. Puma soon realized that a soup kitchen was not enough. With the generous support of thousands of donors and private and government grants, Eva’s has grown into the most respected anti-poverty program in New Jersey.
For more information about the Eva’s Village “Bond, Boost, and Build” team building effort for corporations, the “Journey of Hope” 5k fun walk/run, “Behind the Seams” fashion show, and other events at Eva’s Village, please go to http://www.evasvillage.org/ call 973.523.6220 or write to: Donna Fico, Chief Marketing Officer, Eva’s Village, 393 Main Street, Paterson, NJ, 07501.
This press release has been distributed by SalemGlobal Internet Interactive Public Relations. Based in New York City, SalemGlobal, optimizes websites to increase donations for non profit organizations, increase traffic from search engines, provides lead generation, and improves conversion of site visitors to buyers. Other services include general website marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), ecommerce solutions, content management systems, website hosting, web design and maintenance. For more information, please contact CEO Raphi Salem at 646-217-4733.
Internet Marketing New York, Do Facebook, YouTube &/or Social Media Work For Business? I Bet Old Spice, Southwest Airlines and Radio Shack Say Yes! Squeeze and Lance Armstrong Ride Again
Posted by Salem Global on Jul 22, 2010
Last Thursday evening I was working late (ok it wasn’t THAT late) in my New York City office when my good friend (and business insurance agent) Seth Jonas (http://sjonasinsurance.com/) posted on Facebook that Squeeze was in Bryant Park. So I stroll over to my conference room window that overlooks Bryant Park and see a sea of people in Yoga clothing doing a down dog. I try calling Seth but it goes to voicemail. So I text him and he says its near the Southwest Airlines kiosk. His brother Barry got me onto the VIP list for a special intimate secret concert at the last second. So do I think social media and Facebook can work for business? Absolutely!
Who benefits from little “tweets” Facebook and LinkedIn updates? Well, that all depends on how you are using them. True, most social media today is certainly used by college kids telling their friends that they are going to get a slice of pizza off campus or that someone is at a concert or questions like “is anyone still in the dorm room than can bring me my wallet. Students and young adults, the majority of the 500 million Facebook users, probably use it the most. But now that businesses are starting to wake up to word of mouth media, big business is benefiting. If small and medium size businesses catch on, they will be able to compete with the big guns.
Southwest airlines has a bar and outdoor lounge area at the edge of Bryant Park on the corner of Sixth Avenue and Fortieth Street. They opened their doors this past spring and the place has been packed ever since. But I thought it was just a sandwich place and bar. Little did I realize that it actually has corporate sponsorship. Smart! An organization called “artists den” has been signing up big old popular bands to play venues all over and even get broadcast on national TV. So it all came together when my friend Seth updated his Facebook profile and I heard the message. And the message was loud and clear. I brought my FlipCam to the show and got some good footage before I was told that I couldn’t record anymore. Check out their opening number “black coffee in bed” here on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5zxy5laHCQ. So far there are 10 views. I guarantee this will shoot up past the 100 mark and will become one of my biggest viral videos out of the 226 that I have put together. And just to make you a bit jealous, yes – they played all of their old hits; Tempted, Slap and Tickle, Annie Get Your Gun, Cool For Cats, Another Nail In My Heart, Is That Love, and I think they ended with Pulling Muscles From A Shell.
So who benefits from this situation? Squeeze promotes their old name and new album. The Artists Den, Southwest Airlines, Wichcraft (sandwich place), YouTube, my insurance agent, and me. But when I post my video to YouTube, so do the advertisers that tag on to my video. And when I blog and tweet about it, the advertisers benefit as well. So content is king in terms of being the driving force behind your advertising. But don’t be fooled. You need to create that content in order to benefit from it.
And speaking of YouTube content, Old Spice is back on millions of people’s radar due to their BRILLIANT campaign on YouTube over the last 2 weeks. http://www.youtube.com/user/oldspice?v=uLTIowBF0kE&feature=pyv&ad=5066079497&kw=old%20spice%20commercial&gclid=CLnn1ozl-aICFQR75QodaQf1_Q (Over 9.7 million views) Now granted I personally haven’t used Old Spice since receiving some around my Bar Mitzvah in 1983. (Maybe I got some for Hanukkah in 85 or 86). But if you watch TV, they have had some funny commercials throughout the years. But whoever thought of a campaign to have an actor (and a “ridiculously handsome” former NFL Football player) on call 24/7 responding to Twitter and YouTube comments absolutely wins the social media race of the month. And the writers on staff at the same time coming up with creative responses to famous celebrities and actors and pop culture icons will go down in history. Check out the Alyssa Milano Twitter and video responses (http://www.alyssa.com/news/here-is-what-to-do-next-mr-old-spice/), the hilarious Old Spice response bringing back Milano’s 11 year old adolescent Tony Danza Who’s The Boss TV days (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oElH6M_5i4) and the final video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFDqvKtPgZo (over 2.6 million views). And just as Old Spice is benefitting, so is Milano’s career and the charities that she supports. She was able to raise $90,000 on her birthday through her fans. Wow! Let’s see how much she can raise by tagging on to the Old Spice campaign.
Finally, for all of you Livestrong yellow rubber bracelet people out there who wish they could ride a bike like the wind, RadiosShack benefits from sponsoring Lance Armstrong and the people who ride with him. At the 16th stage of the 21 stage, 2200 mile, Tour De France, Lance is in the 31st position while the other Americans are Christopher Horner in position 21 and Levi Leipheimer is in 7th place http://www.letour.fr/2010/TDF/LIVE/us/1500/classement/index.html
Books of the week – Fiction – The Blind Side by Michael Lewis and Non-Fiction – On Selling, by Mark H. McCormack and Burn Rate by Michael Wolff. Movies – The Vagina Monologues and Y Tu Mamá También. (Yes a racy week for the 9 days huh?)
If you want to know more about Old Spice YouTube, Facebook, squeeze, books I have read, movies I have watched and/or social media for your business, call me at 212-993-5828 or email me at info@salemglobal.com to set up a conversation or check out www.SalemGlobal.com for more information. Or even better, come to one of my events. My exclusive networking group is meeting this Thursday at 5WPR in midtown.
Internet Marketing NYC, LeBron James Heats Up Miami, NY Yankees Steinbrenner Dead at 80, Beautiful Rainbows: What your business can learn from sports legends and viral video
Posted by Salem Global on Jul 13, 2010
There’s only 1 thing that can ruin my regular friendly poker game. No – not a bad flop. Nope, not my friend’s quads beating out my full house. It’s a ridiculous hour of LeBron James hour-long TV special on ESPN. Come on people. It’s like a Christmas special in July. Wait – that’s EXACTLY what it was. But that’s the advertising and media for you. Why just make an announcement when you can go on TV, get paid by a network and have advertisers and sponsors foot the bill. Because WE, the consumers actually foot the bill. Thinking about it now, I should’ve paid more attention to the advertisers during the hour long special. My guess is that it was all beer, cars and shavers. While my poker friends were betting team jerseys and numbers (23 – James and Michael Jordan), I took advantage by focusing on my OWN game. Let’s just say that though Miami will be paying James $11 – $15 Million dollars next year, I came home with an extra $20 bucks in my pocket… that paid for beer and hot dogs for the SalemGlobal Internet staff at Rudy’s Bar & Grill on 9th Avenue and 44th. (http://websitestrategymarketing.com/salemglobal-staff-summer-2010) So who ELSE is the big winner huh?!?
It got me thinking about the true ROI (Return On Investment) one player actually brings to a team. Well, considering how much an average ticket to a sports event costs these days $30 – $60 per game. Multiplied by how many seats in a stadium or arena? Plus don’t forget box seats, lounges, food, beverages, sponsorships and the list goes on for moneymaking opportunities in the billion dollar industry of sports marketing… Yeah – why not. It’s only another $15 million dollars. But as I understand it, it truly wasn’t so much about the money anymore. I think I read that the Chicago Bulls were actually offering even MORE money. And the Cleveland Cavaliers were offer even MORE money than the Bulls! It had to do with actually winning a championship. Similar to what do you get for the person who has it all? You get them something more special than a material possession. In James’ case, he was looking for a ring – but not the one you can buy. I guess he sincerely believes (or maybe his agent does) that Miami offers the greatest hope for a championship. By the way, if you want to know who are the top paid athletes in the US – check out http://www.gkmen.com/sports/north-american-sports/who-are-highest-paid-athletes-2010190210. And if you want the international list, check out the following link for the #1 at $110 million. Here is a hint before you click on the link; he is a better driver on a course instead of his own driveway… http://www.mensweekly.net/2010/04/17/10-highest-paid-athletes-2/10/.
On a sad note, we lost a great one today. New York Yankees brilliant, charismatic character, (former) owner and frequently mentioned on Seinfeld, George Steinbrenner. I grew up with the Yankees and Steinbrenner has always been a huge personality in New York. But even outside of NY, Steinbrenner is known and will always be remembered as the guy who brought (and bought) greats like Reggie Jackson, Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Catfish Hunter, Dave Winfield, Gooose Gossage, Joe Torre, Billy Martin, Yogi Berra, Darryl Strawberry (and the list goes on) to New York. The Bronx Bombers won seven World Series titles and 11 American League pennants since Steinbrenner took the helm. He will surely be missed.
What does all this have to do with Internet Marketing? Sports marketing. Want to sell more product or services (mostly to men)? Start incorporating sports into some of your marketing. Need I say more?
Think stupid videos are just plain old stupid? 3,664,719 think so also. If you haven’t seen it already, check out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQSNhk5ICTI. And if you want to experience my sense of humor, please check out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SLSvEe7No_w. What does it mean? It means that anything can go viral on YouTube. But the real winners are the 4 kids – ok – young adults – who put together a song “honoring” the double rainbow video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MX0D4oZwCsA (1,966,418 views). Why aren’t they implementing the Google AdSense feature where they can make money every time someone clicks on an ad? I don’t know. But maybe they share in the ad revenue derived from the advertisement on the right? If your business isn’t utilizing video in your marketing approach, you should start. Your competitors are thinking about it right now.
Last comment for this week: Great book (and blog) www.WaiterRant.net. You will think very differently next time you eat out in a restaurant. Also started billion dollar IMG CEO Mark H. McCormack “On Selling.” Gives some good insight into the world of sales. Also reading Michael Wolff’s “Burn Rate.” It’s an “old” tale about the early days of the Internet from 1994 – 1998. It’s a fun read. It overlaps with the beginning of my career but it’s very relevant to all businesses and its written well.
Want to know more about sports marketing, website marketing and how video can help your business, give me a call at 212-993-5828 or email raphis@salemglobal.com to set up a conversation or check out www.SalemGlobal.com for more information. Or even better, come to one of my events. We are taking it easy in August but we will be doing a full court press in September.
SalemGlobal Staff Summer 2010
Posted by Aryeh.Landowne on Jul 13, 2010
Outside Rudy’s Bar and Grill, 9th Avenue at 44th NYC
Website Marketing NY, July 4 and Prince: What your business can learn from holiday sales, beaches, BBQs, fireworks and being oblivious
Posted by Salem Global on Jul 6, 2010
One of my associates (Christopher) passed on a great article today. Prince, or the artist formerly known as Prince or now as I have learned, Love symbol #2 has granted an interview to Peter Willis of the British Daily Mirror. (http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/news/2010/07/05/prince-world-exclusive-interview-peter-willis-goes-inside-the-star-s-secret-world-115875-22382552/) Prince basically lives in his own fantasy land in Minneapolis (yes folks Minneapolis, MN) and has built some sort of anti-celebrity fortress where no one else has. He isn’t the California punk that most celebrities turn into. He is super smart and super talented and super successful. I think he plays 27 instruments on his new album. He has sold over 100 million albums.
How many times do I personally say “we are going to party like its 1999?” Objectively speaking, I probably use this phrase at least once a week. Hurry up and listen or download from YouTube before it gets taken down because of copyright issues. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSqYAbBFhzc. By the way – here is some crazy trivia – What year was 1999 recorded and released? Answer will be at end of this writing.
Prince has always bucked the trend and the norm. He has been fighting the Internet and copyright issues forever and won’t distribute his music through iTunes or other electronic means. He thinks the Internet is like MTV – an old fad, and has even closed down his own official website. (Luckily you have me to steer you towards archived copies of his old websites here: http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.npgmusicclub.com) So what can I tell you about his version of Internet marketing? I disagree. I think he has the wrong philosophy when it comes to marketing. The way to go is like the Grateful Dead and Phish and any band or outfit that allows you to record, bootleg and distribute as much as possible. When it comes to 2010, popularity and volume are the things that allow you to stand out from the crowd. Will Prince sell 100 million more albums by shunning the Internet? I don’t think so. He is giving away his new album, 20TEN in the Daily Mirror this Saturday. Why? I can’t tell you. I don’t think it’s smart. On the other hand, I am not trying to buck the trend…
As for not bucking the trend and getting your name out there, the winners of this year’s July 4th please take Raphi Salem’s hard earned spending money go out to Filene’s Basement and Syms. These two smart retailers not only had a July 4th sale, they had an extra 20% off with Internet coupons and a huge BASH! Meaning, sale on top of sale. While everyone else was having a ubiquitous Happy Birthday America! Sale, these stores and organizations went all out. They got people into their stores more than their competitors because they practically were giving clothing away. The way I see it is that Ben and Jerry’s has a free scoop of ice cream day, Starbucks has a free coffee day, Dunkin Donuts, Cold Stone Creamery and even Toys R Us and Chuck E Cheese have a “free” day. They spread the news like wildfire. These companies GET IT! Give it away for free for ONE MEASLY DAY and make a friend forever. Even people who come in once a day a year to get their free (fill in the blank) spread the word. That’s PR folks. That’s word of mouth marketing. And it’s majorly worth it. So while Prince might be dis-connected because he is 1 person who has millions in the bank, don’t be a fool and follow the Internet crowd. Get those coupons and promotions out today, this week, month and year…. through your website, blog, video and online press release through email. I guarantee you success!
If you are a local or national business and want to get your name out there, want to talk about Prince and bucking the norm, or tell me how hot it is outside, give me a call at 212-993-5828, email raphis@salemglobal.com or check out www.SalemGlobal.com for more information. Answer to the trivia question: Prince’s 1999 was produced and distributed in 1982. Yes, you are old, and so am I 