Free Printing and Paper
Where to find it

I often run into people who say "I can't afford to do a mailer" or "I can't afford to print those flyers".

Good news!!! There are EASY solutions to this!

Depending on what your need is, you can find FREE (or discounted) paper and FREE (or discounted) printing.

1. Find a company with a similar cause/need. Say you are in the Real Estate business and you want to print flyers to "farm" an area, passing them out to neighbors. You may partner with a mortgage company, title company, lawn care service, maid service or even a pizza company who is interested in printing on the opposite side of the flyer or just split the cost. You could do this for ANY company. Think outside the box.

2. Split it up. Depending on what you want to print, companies are usually willing to donate paper if there is a cause involved. We needed 5 reams of paper to print 1,250 flyers for a charity drive our company was doing. Instead of buying the paper and printing ourselves, we got 5 companies do donate 1 ream of paper each and 3 companies to split up the printing. We offered to put their logo on the flyer as a thank you and for publicity.

3. Find a cause. Your marketing idea could have a twist for a cause. Meaning, you could partner with a non-profit. You will be promoting their cause and people are usually willing to donate for a write-off or a cause. One year, I got 5 reams of colored paper donated to our non-profit from a local office supply company.

4. Back side sneaker. Call your local printer and let them know you are looking to partner up with someone for advertising. They may have some clients who would let you have the back side of their publication for a minimal cost. OR just be on the lookout for marketing pieces that could easily be double sided and give them a call.

5. Bulk discounts. Printers offer discounted rates for bulk orders. Collect orders from your fellow associates to print in bulk rather than printing a small order by yourself.

6. Bulk postage. Many mail places offer bulk postage discount rates. All you have to do is send them your contact list in an excel spreadsheet so they can sort the list by postal code and they print your labels right on your mailer! For us, it is less than a price of a stamp to fold, tab and send our newsletters with the bulk rate.

Oh and please remember to use re-cycled paper when possible and also to support your local post office.

Happy mailing!

Ditzy, Snotty, Bossy & Irritated

Ditzy, Snotty, Bossy & Irritated
Understanding Personality Types


We have 11 people that make up our company. We had a company retreat today. It was awesome. One of the components of the retreat was learning about social styles and figuring out what our individual styles are. It was a highly interactive session which involved a lot of standing up and moving around based on questions from our presenter Bob Heavers from Priority Management in Denver. (highly recommend him)


In the midst of all the laughter and puns tossed about the room, what we saw is that our 11 people make up the melting pot that is our office. Not two of us are the same. Sure we mirror components of each others personalities, but we are not the same. Thank goodness! We all compliment one another in a really beautiful and convoluted way AND our needs are different.

One of the true gems about this training was finding out what people need (to be right, produce results, have personal security or gain personal approval), their growth action (to declare, to listen, to initiate or to check in) and their back-up behavior rather, how they act when you raise tension in their environment (withdraw, become autocratic, acquiesce or attack). This is very valuable in the workplace but can be extremely useful when you apply this to your clients.

What should you do when you know someone just wants the bottom line? How should you handle a client that needs ALL the facts and details before making a decision? What should you say to an extremely expressive and outgoing person? How do you talk to someone that is hesitant to even work with you because they don't trust you yet? Being versatile, that is to say being able to work well with all social styles will increase your value and set you apart from your competition.

Additionally, knowing yourself and controlling yourself are two very useful tools to have when working with other human beings. Next, spend some time to get to know others. Think about how you should best communicate and interact with them. Doing something for others, we were taught, and adjusting your style to their needs will create more productive relationships.

Bottom line, always follow the platinum rule: "Treat others the way they want to be treated."

P.S.
Why did I title this blog Ditzy, Snotty, Bossy & Irritated? Well, let's just say those are some of the funnier traits in our team members including myself. Bonus - I thought it would get more people to read this post...which is one of my favorites!


P.S.S.
A shout out to North American Title of Greeley for the yummy omelet bar! You guys rock!

125 Coffees

125 Coffees
(or tea) Instead of $1,000


Our President Pete Lansing and I had breakfast a few months ago. We were chatting about marketing and got to talking about relationship marketing instead of advertising marketing. The two are very different.

"We don't spend money on print advertising," I tell him, "we are focused on the relationship."

He then went on to tell me about a Loan Originator who came to him wanting to spend thousands of dollars on this print advertising campaign that he "hoped" would bring in the business.

Pete went on to ask him a few questions, probably like "who is your target demographic" and "why will this work" and such. After a few minutes Pete asked him if he would rather have thousands of dollars for this one marketing campaign or take 125 people out for a lunch or coffee.

The point was it is the relationship that makes the bigger difference and it costs LESS money. Your A clients are the ones you have a relationship with so go hang out with those people. It is more fun anyway.

You could have 125 coffee appointments for under $8 each.
That is about 10 per month = $80 per month
That is about 3 per week = $24 per week

Depending on how your paid, if you get 10 deals per year how much would you make?
What if you got 25 deals from it?
What if you got 50 deals?

Don't get me wrong, print advertising can and does work (I have a lot of AMAZING friends in the industry) but think about what you are trying to accomplish and ask yourself, "how about a coffee instead?"

The Last 4 Tips

The Last 4 Tips
(as featured in the Board Talk publication)

7.      Nametag – this is the best $8.00 I have spent. I make sure I wear it to all networking events and “accidentally” leave it on when I run errands sometimes. It tends to spark conversations. Feeling bold? Wear it upside down to make people really look at it!

8.     Write and Article – Write an article for a local magazine, newspaper or any publication really. People are always looking for guest authors and unique articles. The best part, it is FREE!

9.    Have a Tagline – Find a tagline that you actually SAY after you introduce yourself and your company. It’s no use if it is just on your marketing materials – think about the taglines you remember, most of them are from commercials, not just print advertising.

10. Split the Cost – Any time you can co-sponsor an event or split the cost of an ad it means more money in your pocket. I ALWAYS ask if I can have a co-sponsor upfront – the worst they can say is no.  

The Monkey Points West

Tom Gillespie Vice President/Branch Manager
Points West Community Bank

The Monkey Points West
A Visit to Points West Community Bank


The Monkey took a trip to Wellington to visit Tom Gillespie Vice President/Branch Manager of Points West Community Bank. Tom is a good friend of Home Team Lending's and refers business to us and we, in turn, refer business to him.

Home Team Lending's  relationship with Points West is great for a number of reasons.

1. They do construction loans, we do not.
2. They do commercial loans, we do not.
3. They don't do permanent financing, we do!

This brings me to a great marketing tactic - don't try to do everything, do what you do well and find someone else to fill in the gaps!

For Realtors, this may look like determining physical boundaries for your business. Sure you could office out of Northern Colorado and sell or list a home in Denver or even Boulder, but is it worth it? Spending all that time researching a new market or driving 100+ miles round trip can take valuable time away from prospecting. It would be MUCH more worth your time to spend an hour interviewing agents in the area or having agents already set to go that you can refer business to. A lot of the time you can even receive a referral fee for doing so.

So - go out and find those businesses to partner with and make more money as a result!

The Monkey jumped up on the sign!

The Monkey also finished up a few files while he was there.

The Kitten Factor

The Kitten Factor
Works Every Time


I recently received an email from the Colorado Association of REALTORS inviting me to bring a friend to convention.

When I opened the email up, my heart was immediately softened by the kitten and puppy featured on the invite.

HOW CUTE! I immediately read the entire email. (secretly searching to see if there were going to be kittens and puppies at the Real Estate Convention)

The bottom line is this image warmed me up to their message. Graphics and photos convey a powerful message. Let's face it, baby animals are easy on the eyes and warm on the heart.

Think about using "The Kitten Factor" on a marketing piece in the near future and measure the response.

p.s. can I have a kitten at work?

Lights Out!

Lights Out
Tell Me When My Lights Are Out

I recently got a note in the mail:

To Whom It May Concern, 


We recently discovered a signage or lighting problem at your location. The enclosed photo was taken on Monday, August 15, 2011. YESCO can repair and maintain all of your outside lighting. We would love the opportunity to repair your outages. If you would like us to put you on the schedule, please call us at your convenience. Thank you for your consideration.


Included was a photo of our street sign that is only half way illuminated.

A few things are great about this letter.

1. I don't come to the office at night. In fact, I avoid it. I would have not know this fact for a long time.
2. They included a photo of my sign so I could see how it looks at night.
3. They provided me with their contact info and made it easy for me to contact them.

When was the last time you sent something to a FSBO (For Sale By Owner) or a potential client with a USEFUL tidbit of info and then a plug for your services?

Sample letter to potential FSBO client:

"To Whom It May Concern,


I have noticed that your brochure box has been empty for 5 days from Aug 13th - 18th. Research shows that 1 out of every 3 buyers find brochures helpful in their decision making process. 


My Real Estate Team is dedicated to getting maximum exposure for your home on the market. Here are 5 ways we make sure every potential buyer is seeing your home.


*Then go on to list the ways you set yourself apart including how you make sure brochures are always full in their box. 




What other things could you be sending out?