Birthday In A Box

I'm a big believer in the concept that marketing should be fun. In fact, there are so many different ways that you can build your business that there is no reason why every marketing activity you do can't be enjoyable and fun for you.

One of my clients has made 'marketing can be fun' into a mantra for his business. One of his favorite, and most effective, marketing activities is something he calls his 'birthday in a box' lunch.

He started out by getting very clear about his target market and specialty. His niche is financial planning for widows. He really enjoys working with his clients, and gets to know them on a personal as well as a business level. He knows where they like to travel, he knows the names and hobbies of their grandkids, he knows what kind of pets his clients have, and he knows their birth date.

About 2-3 weeks before his clients' birthday, he calls them up and says something like, "Mary, I know you have a birthday coming up. I'd really like to host a birthday lunch in your honor. Would that be OK with you?"

Of course, his clients are delighted. He gets the names and addresses of 8-10 of her friends and sends them a beautiful invitation to the lunch. He then calls them a couple of days before to confirm.

During the lunch, he has a corsage or birthday cake for the birthday honoree, and they all have a delightful time enjoying the birthday celebration. He does not talk about business, he does not hand out his business cards, and he does not try to recruit any of her friends. It is simply a wonderful lunch for his client and her friends. They reminisce, they laugh, they catch up on their lives, and they enjoy each other's company. He enjoys it as much as his clients and their friends do.

Now, of course, his client has already told her friends that he is her financial advisor, so he doesn't have to. A few days after the lunch, he sends a beautiful hand-written thank you note to everyone who attended (again, no business card!).

And every time he hosts his birthday in a box lunch, he gets at least one referral from it. All without doing any 'marketing' or 'selling'. And everyone has a wonderful time in the process. His favorite comment to me was "the more fun I have with my clients, the more clients I have".

You, too, can experience fun with your marketing. Every time you look at the next marketing activity you are planning, ask yourself "is this fun?" "Am I enjoying this?" "How could I enjoy it even more?"

The more fun you have with your clients and your marketing, the more clients you have.

How can you add fun to your marketing?

How can you add more fun with your clients?

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