The Man Who Sold Hot Dogs

Many years ago there was a man who lived by the side of the road and sold HOT DOGS.
He was hard of hearing so he had no radio.
He had trouble with his eyes so he read no newspaper.
But he sold HOT DOGS
He put up signs on the highway telling how good they were.
He stood on the side of the road and cried: "BUY A HOT DOG, MISTER?"
And people bought, because he was so enthusiastic.
He increased his meat and bun orders.
He bought a bigger stove to take care of his growing trade.
He was so happy selling Hot Dogs and people enjoyed doing business with him.
One day his son came home from college to help him out.
And something happened.
His son said, "Father, haven’t you been listening to the radio? Haven’t you been reading the newspaper?
The situation in Europe is terrible. The Domestic situation is worse."
Whereupon the father thought, "Well, my son’s been to college, he reads the newspaper, he listens to the radio, and he ought to know."
So the father cut down on his meat and bun orders, he took down all his advertising signs, and no longer bothered to stand on the highway to sell his hot dogs.
And his HOT DOG sales fell, ALMOST OVERNIGHT.
"You’re right, son," the father said to the boy.
"WE CERTAINLY ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF A GREAT DEPRESSION."

Don't Panic

I hope you opened the article in the previous blog. If not go back and do it now. This information is very good. DO NOT PANIC. Take the advice of this article. Think about this: When was the last time WAL-MART or any other giant retail stopped their advertising? I am pretty sure the answer is never. They continue to advertise during good times and bad times. That is one of the reasons they are where they are today. Where do you want to be tomorrow?

Hard Times

Read this article, will help you understand what is going on: http://matrix.rabhost.org/AscentCapture/FFF/1047703.pdf?CFID=85485&CFTOKEN=98b2abeedd6ee2da-340A6B20-1321-0A83-9583F95614B904A7

Who comes first?

I hope you realize what Mr. Grundman was saying. Yes, his business is important to him, but if you follow his idea you will see that Grundman places his customers as #1 and by doing this his business is successful. Who do you put first?

Plus, you see he did not cut his advertising budget. Matter of fact he increased his budget. What do you think about that?

Business Weathers Storm

Local businesses are weathering the national economic downturn as best they can, thanks to what the analysts call forward thinking.Mark Grundman, owner of Grundman Shoes, 906 N. Seventh St., said he anticipated the economic downturn two years ago and has been preparing for a lull in business. He upped his 2008 advertising budget and tried to purchase more inexpensive items from his distributors so he could pass the savings on to his customers."My approach for 2008 was not to try and make big profit but to keep my doors open," Grundman explained. "I tried to buy cheaper, more valued products from my distributors so I could try and keep my customers. So when the economic downturn hit, I was doing more advertising, trying to offer better deals, prices. "Yes, I'm taking smaller markup, but I want to keep my customers. This is the kind of economy where you thank your customers for staying loyal. This is not the time to make a profit."The result, Grundman said, is a still successful business despite a national economic decline."Our business is steady - the fall sale was successful," he said. "My plan is working. Either that, or the people of Vincennes are very loyal."And Grundman said it will be more of the same in 2009. He's preparing for the worst, but hoping for the best."At the moment, I don't plan any change," he said. "I plan on my keeping my advertising budget up and margins very thin. I'll keep looking for special values from distributors so I can pass those on to my customers."

Welcome

Thank you for taking the time to learn a little more about marketing and advertising. My plan is to bring ideas and thoughts to you concerning a very important part of your business. Advertising should always be termed an investment for your business. At times I will include articles that I find beneficial. Stay tuned and I will get going soon.


Sonny Dotson
(AD-Lad)