Every now and then a news headline will catch my eye and I will share it with you as to how it relates to Internet marketing NY. Usually it’s a sports piece. Sometimes political. Sometimes technology or pop culture related. But when I saw the headline about Playboy going 3-D, I OF COURSE had to share it with you.

Yes folks. Sex sells. And apparently, 3-D sex (hopefully for Playboy) will sell even more. For many years, Playboy was the #1 brand for nude magazines and the sex industry. Growing up in the 70′s, anytime someone referred to the source of something sexual, they would also refer to the Playboy brand. They were as “Kleenex” was to “tissue,” “Q-tip” was to “cotton swab,” “band-aid” was to “the thing you put on a boo boo.” The goal of every organization should be to brand themselves so well that people think of that company when the consumer wants to make a purchase. This same theory applies to B2B and B2C companies as well as whether they are local, domestic or international. It doesn’t matter what industry they are in – you ALWAYS want to be at the top of someone’s thoughts. If you are a service based company, the rule is that you will be competing with at least another two brands or companies. This is because one figures that out of three choices the consumer will get the small, medium or large choices and relate the size of company to what service, action or hours you will get by comparison. As the sayings go, just because you are the biggest (or most expensive) doesn’t mean you are the best.

Getting back to the sex selling part though, as you might already know, the publishing sector has taken a huge hit due to the Internet. (Thanks to the professionals in my industry… sorry about that. But we simply believe you get more bang for your marketing buck <puns intended> when you utilize the Internet. But let me also make this very clear that I don’t believe in shutting down ALL other marketing programs. I just believe strongly in a holistic and integrated approach to marketing that includes as many media as possible. Obviously everyone has budget constraints. That’s why companies need to really see what is the most cost effective solution for them… and of course Internet marketing is the smartest What I am really saying is that “you can go with this, or you can go with that” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9F5xcpjDMU (The Choice Is Yours) – or as Stevie Winwood says “it’s a fine line, it’s a very fine line” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CULgdX6I5X8 (Split Decision)

All media has taken a hit. TV, radio, billboard advertising, direct mail etc. So, traditional media has to fight back. Playboy is fighting back by introducing 3-D into its magazines. Hey – it worked for James Cameron’s Avatar. So why not Playboy? I happen to think that that just as traditional technology brought us film and the moving picture and then HDTV, your own personal computer will soon be hi-def, or 3-D or next generation what ever that means. Then the 3-D magazines will be stored away in your closet for your kids and grandkids to marvel at sometime in the distant future. And believe me. They will laugh but will be fascinated. (Just like a friend of mine who inherited 200 old Playboys from his neighbor before the neighbor moved. After all, realistically Of course you will store them in the basement, but you certainly wouldn’t pay someone to move them. Would you?

This morning I was at my regular networking meeting in Westchester and I was surprised to discover that some people STILL are not on LinkedIn. If you are reading my blog regularly or just happened to have stumbled upon it, or are looking for marketing advice or networking advice to increase your business or sales, you MUST have a LinkedIn profile. You should be using linked in regularly – which means at least 1 hour per week. You need to fill out your complete profile to at least 95%. Then you need to join up to 50 groups for free and promote yourself. Not for your health, but actually for business. So Raphi – does this social networking stuff REALLY work? My professional answer is YES YES YES. And I am not suggesting spending 50% of your time on LinkedIn or Facebook or any other social networking site. I am suggesting that you give 2% (1 hour out of 40 in a week) to your marketing. And if you can’t do it, hire someone else to do it for you. I guarantee it will give you business or, at the very least, your money back!

Want to know more about sensational ways to promote yourself or just smart ways to get your name out there? Call me at 212-993-5828, email raphis@salemglobal.com or check out www.SalemGlobal.com for more information. It’s the second quarter of 2010. I bet your competitors are doing all this stuff. What are you waiting for?