Monthly Archives: June 2011

How Groupon Is Robbing Mainstreet USA…

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It’s official.  Groupon has filed with the SEC to “go public”.

In a time when mainstreet USA was struggling for business, Groupon rode in on their White Stallion and promised to bring business in the front door.  They patted the small business owner on the head and said, “don’t worry…we’ll help YOU.”

Groupon offered to advertise your business for free.  They said they’d even sell your stuff for you.  They’d handle EVERYTHING for YOU.  The best part is there’s NO RISK to you.  If no one buys, it didn’t cost you anything!

If no one buys, you get FREE advertising from GROUPON!!!!!

But what if lots of people buy?  What’s this “Groupon Effect” people are talking about?

Well simply put, when people buy your outragiously discounted and now commoditized wares through Groupon….Groupon will write YOU a check!!!

So to recap:

  1. Groupon advertises YOUR business FREE
  2. There’s “no risk” to you
  3. If no one buys your stuff, you pay nothing
  4. GROUPON will pay YOU if you sell your products or services

This sounds GREAT!  What’s the catch?

  1. You have to dive on price which compromises your integrity
  2. The reduced profit is split with Groupon
  3. Groupon uses your name, brand and customer base to build their database to use later to market other businesses, and even competitors
  4. You risk alienating your loyal customer base
  5. You risk overwhelming your staff with an influx of non-local business
  6. You give deals and price breaks to strangers instead of your loyal customer base
  7. You lose over 50% of your profit margin
  8. You have to clean up the mess, while Groupon moves on to the next business

In short, your business is underwriting Groupon’s growth.  They’re now selling shares for BILLIONS and you are still struggling to pay your CAM.  You are essentially paying THOUSANDS of dollars for an email blast that should cost you pennies.  Imagine paying $15,000 for an email blast.

But Groupon rocks other than that.

Here’s more on Groupon from the Tribune.

The solution?  Build your own following one loyal customer at a time.  Read 1,000 True Fans.  Partner with other local businesses and cross promote locally so you can grow together, steadily.  Forget the GRAND opening mentality.  It’s easier to keep a customer than it is to get a new one.  Love the ones you’re with and empower them to spread the word.

If you ran a Groupon, ask the board for some stock.  You helped build Groupon.

Rules to live by if you ever get interviewed…

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Seth Godin writes about how to be interviewed.  If you run a business, you may be interviewed at some point.  Even if you don’t run a business, you may be interviewed.

Here’s how to rock it.  You want to rock the interview…

Otherwise, your non-rocking of the interview may live on the web forever.  That’s a long time.

Seth has a way of breaking things down that makes a lot of sense.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2011/05/how-to-be-interviewed.html

Chicago Morning Team Reunites For Syndication

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Chicago Morning Team Reunites For Syndication

Chicago, Illinois- Chicago radio veterans Wendy Snyder and Bill Leff are reuniting this week to host the nationally syndicated “The Kevin Trudeau Show.”  The duo previously enjoyed a loyal following as the night talkers at WLUP-FM/Chicago and later as morning stars on WKQX/Chicago (Q101).

“Some men came to my home in the middle of the night,” joked Bill Leff.  “I was blindfolded and taken to an undisclosed location.  I was put in a small room where a tall man with an under bite asked me a lot of questions about badminton.  Then [he] forced me into a studio where I did shows with Wendy.  Overall, a VERY pleasant experience.”

Snyder said the reunion with Leff is a long time coming and she looks forward to more opportunities to work with her long-time collaborator.

“We appreciate Kevin [Trudeau] leaving the studio door unlocked while he’s on vacation,” said Wendy Snyder.  “He won’t make that mistake again.”

Snyder is heard weekdays in Chicago alongside WLS-AM’s morning hosts “Don Wade and Roma” and she formerly starred with the likes of Steve Dahl, Garry Meier, and Kevin Matthews.  Leff is a regular on WGN-AM’s weekend lineup and was a fixture on Roe Conn’s WLS-AM afternoon show for several years.

The re-pairing of Snyder and Leff is the brainchild of Matt Dubiel,  General Manager of Trudeau’s network of more than 50 stations nationwide.  Dubiel began his career as an intern for “Wendy and Bill” in the early 1990’s.

“When I started out in this business, Bill used to make me fetch his ham-on-ryes, find mandolin strings at 2 a.m., and pluck the pimentos out of his olives,” said Matt Dubiel.  “It’s a pleasure to be able to do that again 17 years later.  Fanning him with palm fronds is a little bit much, but it’s only for a week.  I can take it.”

A list of radio affiliates carrying “Wendy & Bill” can be found at KTRadioNetwork.com, along with on demand audio and video of the shows.

Fans can reconnect with Snyder and Leff at SnydeRemarksRadio.net and BillLeff.com.

About “The Kevin Trudeau Show” and The KT Radio Network (KTRN)

“The Kevin Trudeau Show” originates from Trudeau’s world headquarters, heard on more than 50 radio stations weekly in markets such as New York City, LA, Chicago, Dallas, and Boston.  Starting June 6th KTRN moves to weekdays on KLAA/Los Angeles from 10p-1a PDT.  The radio show promises 3 hours of the information “they” don’t want you to know about health and wellness, wealth building, financial independence, and the truth about the government, corporate America, and the media.  For more info please see KTRadioNetwork.com and KevinOnAir.com

About Kevin Trudeau

Kevin Trudeau is one of the most-read authors and most-viewed television personalities in history.  His #1 New York Times Best Sellers include Natural Cures They Don’t Want You To Know About, More Natural Cures Revealed, and The Weight Loss Cure.  Trudeau’s books combined have sold more than 13 million copies.  In addition to hosting his own nationally syndicated radio show, Trudeau also works with  several other companies, including a subscription-based online community, www.NaturalCures.com, which boasts an active membership of more than 150,000 members.

 

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