If you are looking for a FREE API (Application Programming Interface) from which to create wonderful online calendar functions, check out 30 Boxes. I am certainly no programmer. However, I have found a way to incorporate the services of 30 Boxes so a local restaurant no longer needs to issue discount coupons. If I can do this without programming skill, imagine what can be accomplished by those who actually have the skill.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Scott,

Your link says it is a "simple web calendar." Does that mean it contacts the user via email when an event the user has posted in it shows up or some time before?

One of the main features of 30 Boxes is not simply that it is an online calendar, but that it is programmed to contact the user via an email message before or when an event is listed on the calendar. 30 Boxes is also designed to allow for "buddy" access. Numerous people can be allowed to view the same calendar and post to it. I have not implemented the 30 Boxes "buddy" system. But, for all I know, that may mean that one calendar actually sends out notices to numerous people. Come to think of it, that's the way most online networks work. But, this same feature is now being done by an online calendar. I think that is amazing. But then, I am easily impressed.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Are Jdate and Jevent Javascript? The reason I ask is because some online sites actually screen out that language. Once again, I understand that is a good reason for a person to use their own domain. But, let's face it, some folks get tired of constantly having to re-invent the wheel every time they want to do something.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Private Reply to Reg Charie

Private Reply to Russ Howard

As it now stands, a person goes to my Squidoo site and clicks an email link. That means the person do not have access to an online form, but must provide the requested information in an ordinary email to the restaurant. What I could do is provide a link from the Squidoo site to a page on my domain name. That page could take Javascript and just about anything I suppose. What I need to understand is how to send the content from my domain page directly into the 30 Boxes Calendar for a specific date.

For example, you have a textbox for a name. You have radio buttons for Birthday, Anniversary or Other. You have a drop-down menu for the month and day. You have a textbox for the email address. Then, you have a Submit button.

Let's say I were to fill this form out for myself - Lamar Morgan, 11-14, Birthday, lamar@mchsi.com. Now, when the Submit button is pushed, all that data goes into the 30 Boxes Calendar for Nov. 14th. But, Ting's has got the 30 Boxes Calendar set up to contact the restaurant a month early. So, on October 14th, Tings is notified that my birthday happens on the 14th of the following month. Ting sees who I am, what the event in question is (my birthday) and how to get in touch with me via email - all in that calendar communication. How do I write the code so that all the information goes into the Nov. 14th calendar space? The reason for wanting to do that is so that Ting's does not have to input data into the 30 Boxes Calendar. Instead, the data goes right from the form on the website to the calendar. I do not believe folks are going to have a problem going from the Squidoo site to the web page to the calendar. The one thing I cannot do is eliminate the Squidoo site. That site has already established a reputation for itself. It even has fans.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Scott,

What you are telling me is that sending content to a specific page in a 30 Boxes Calendar is no big deal. Is it simply an HTML code form? If Squidoo will not for some reason allow it, I should be able to link from my Squidoo lens to a page in my web domain and make the magic happen. I have "Creating Web Pages for Dummies." It's an all-in-one desk reference. It's nine books in one.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Private Reply to Russ Jackman

Private Reply to Heidi Caswell

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Heidi,

The goal here is to provide the discount to the public without the expense of postage, ink and paper. The restaurant want to fill up its premises with people. It is willing to provide a 15% discount on its food for a full house. But, it does not want to do this for everyone, automatically any time they happen to feel the urge. No, they want to do it for "special occasions" - like birthdays and anniversaries.

The restaurant learned through actual experience that coupons directly mailed to the public work better than coupons printed in the newspaper or magazine. Perhaps, because you are physically GIVEN a coupon that is printed on card stock, as opposed to paper, you are more inclined to use it. I am not sure about that, but I feel that could have something to do with it. A card stock coupon should hold up better than a paper coupon. But, how neat not to need coupons at all and still be able to provide the same benefits?

Thanks to Squidoo and 30 Boxes, there is a way this can be accomplished. The Squidoo site simply tells folks where to send their content information via email. This would include the person's name, date of the event, and email address. When the restaurant receives the email, it simply uploads that information into the appropriate calendar date in its 30 Boxes account. Now, a month before that event arrives, 30 Boxes notifies the restaurant. The restaurant then contacts the customer for details on scheduling the special discounted event. This is an automated process that can work from one year to the next. The only thing that would make it more efficient as far as I can tell is to remove the one step of the restaurant having to input customer content. And, if I can figure out how to write the code to make that happen, I plan to do exactly that.

Think about it. How many restaurants do you know would gladly do away with coupons if they actually had a system that could provide the same benefit without the need of postage, paper and ink?

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Russ,

As always, thank you for your insight. You have uncovered the "can of worms" I did not see...again. Yes, there needs to be a back-up should the 30 Boxes service disappear. Coincidentally, by having the customers send an email to the restaurant - as opposed to a form that goes directly to 30 Boxes - we do automatically have a back-up system. Each email gets manually placed into a file folder for safe keeping. So, unless the desktop computer crashes and there is no backup of the hard drive, we should not lose the customer data.

However, the non-commercial use requirement you brought to my attention could be a serious problem. I need to look at the TOS and inquire about that matter to 30 Boxes. This coupon-less initiative could be used as great publicity for 30 Boxes. I am more than willing to give 30 Boxes great publicity for this in exchange to be able to afford to do it.

The public wants to tell Ting's Thai Kitchen when their special events are taking place. Ting's Thai Kitchen wants to place that information in a calendar. Now, the restaurant could easily do this using Windows Calendar on their desktop. 30 Boxes is not needed for simply putting information into a calendar. The benefit of doing this via 30 Boxes is that the 30 Boxes Calendar can actually inform the restaurant a month in advance so the restaurant has time to make special arrangements with its public.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Private Reply to Heidi Caswell

Private Reply to Russ Howard

Private Reply to Russ Jackman

This is a done deal, Lamar. .... You have several capable suppliers before you.

Take one of them over to make a deal with Charlie and put this energy vampire to bed.

What you need to be thinking about is how you can turn every subscriber into 5 more. ... (and 10% is not exciting ..... 50% or FREE IS SEXY).

When you have the viral sorted; .... You can use a cabbage on a stick as a subscriber platform because the only thing that matters is third party validation in your viral process.

FWIW My preference is a PERL based process because I code to have my database emailed to me every night (Or several times each day). ... and I'm up and running in 10 minutes if some-one has a meltdown.

Bestest.

Teddy Towncrier CPP Towncrier-Media.com Supercharging Your Visions.

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

I'm sure there are, Scott.

It was important to mention, though.

Data protection is key. .... Just didn't want some local Whiz-Kid walking in to Charlie after he's up and running and asking a bunch of tough questions which results in Lamar's precious reputation being trashed.

A few years ago; A beloved 150 year old Canadian retailer hit the wall and all assets were liquidated. ... While many of the assets were sold for pennies on the dollar; ... Their mailing list realized 103% of appraised value. ... More

Bestest.

Teddy Towncrier CPP Towncrier-Media.com Supercharging Your Visions.

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Private Reply to Russ Jackman

Private Reply to Reg Charie

Private Reply to Russ Jackman

Private Reply to Reg Charie

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Private Reply to Reg Charie

Private Reply to Russ Jackman

Russ Howard,

I greatly appreciate your comments. They bring important insight into the conversation. The whole idea here is to cut out unnecessary expenses - like ink, paper and time cutting coupons. If you can set up a system wherein the discount can be given and the customer database be enlarged moreso by the efforts of the audience and automation than by the restaurant itself, why not go for it. This is not about collecting email address to turn around and sell. If you think such a disclaimer is appropriate, I will provide one.

What this is about is using technological innovation to fill a little Mom and Pop restaurant up with people. When Scott Wolpott introduced me to "game theory," suddenly I started seeing it employed everywhere I went. It is even in the restaurant business. You would think that the restaurant and coffee shop business was really about FOOD. But, in many cases, it's not REALLY. Instead, it's about the VENUE. If you choose to improve your menu, but ignore your VENUE, you can lose customers. If you improve your venue, but leave the menu the same, you customer base is still likely to increase. It's not so much about the quality of the food you serve as it is about the atmosphere in which you serve it. If you have a restaurant that goes the second mile for its customers by providing FREE Wi-Fi you are likely to have more customers. If there is a banquet room with FREE Wi-Fi and a large HDTV screen, you are likely to have more banquets. Why? Because you have improved the venue. There are now more reasons to come to the restaurant.

Now, Heidi mentioned bringing Twitter into the mix. Excellent idea. You can place a Wi-Fi digital frame in the window of the restaurant and via an RSS feed announce daily specials to the public. There is a Twitter module on Ting's Squidoo site that automatically posts anything the restaurant sends out via Twitter.

What makes this whole idea so revolutionary for this area of Northern California is that a lot of restaurant use coupons and likely waste money doing it. Ting's admits to wasting money putting coupons in magazines. Well, if they can show the restaurant world out here that they can generate more money by not using coupons, other restaurants are likely to follow Ting's example. And, this will add to Ting's popularity. You see, Ting's will not only be bolstering itself. It will be bolstering it's community.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Russ Jackman

Russ Jackman,

Please understand this whole dynamic begins with the customer. It does not begin with the coupon. This is "game theory." It's not really about food. It's about venue.

Think of it this way. Do you care about your birthday, anniversary or another special event? Ting's Thai Kitchen cares. In fact, they care so much they invite you to tell them about those events RIGHT NOW, so they can put those events into a calendar. Then, Ting's will contact you when those special events get close so you and your friends can come and celebrate at Ting's. In fact, Ting's will give everyone in your party a 15% discount. Once the party is in the database, Ting's not only has them for this year, but next year as well...already. You do not have to constantly send Ting's an email to register for special events. If you know when your birthday or special annual events are to take place, you can register all of them will a single email. If 30 Boxes should go down, no problem. The back-up is a desktop calendar and file folder. It's not as much fun as 30 Boxes, but it works.

How did all this come about anyway? Well, I was in Ting's when a woman who sells coupon ad space for a local publication was leaving. The restaurant owner comes over to me and engages me in a conversation. He says the coupon ads in her publication don't work. But, he goes over to his cash register and grabs an envelope and brings it over to me. He opens the envelope and show me a huge stack of coupons. He then says, "These are direct-mail coupons. They work amazingly well." But then he says, "This is so redundant. I have to keep doing this over-and-over again to the same people. What I want to do is build a following." You see, the restaurant owner does not want to be known for his coupons. He wants to be known for his venue. He wants his restaurant to be seen as a destination - not simply a place to pick up food.

While we are talking another customer comes into the restaurant. He wants to do more than just order Thai cuisine. He wants to suggest the owner bring in more fish through a new wholesaler in Santa Rosa, 45 minutes away. Well, fresh fish will not keep for a long period of time in a restaurant. You get the fish in and you had better sell them as quick as you can. Otherwise, they are going to spoil and the restaurant has lost money. Well, on this very thread, Heidi gave the solution - use Twitter. Well, guess what? This can be done with a Wi-Fi digital frame in the window of Ting's. It can actually scroll an RSS feed announcement. The restaurant owner could make a Jott phone call and place his spoken words as text on Twitter and in his Twitter module on his Squidoo lens...as well as on that RSS feed.

Keep in mind, the news media is easy to get into here. Why? Because in many cases, there are no reporters. The newspapers rely on the public to send the news. That may be a big difference between living in a metropolitan area and one that is primarily rural (like Hidden Valley Lake, CA).

Bottom line, there are many different avenues through which to travel here - not just one. Also, I believe database management can provide better customer care than printed coupons.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Lindy Asimus

Russ,

I am not sure you can find a TOS that does not use your data in some fashion. Look here, this is from the Ryze TOS:

"RYZE shares your concerns about personal privacy. Through the Service, and through other contact with RYZE, RYZE may collect personal information and data including, but not limited to, application and web site usage data, viewing data, file transfer and e-mail data, and personal contact information such as e-mail addresses, mailing addresses and phone numbers. Additionally, RYZE's applications and web sites may use technological facilities for tagging and tracking including, but not limited to, Web cookies, login usernames and other technologies to track and correlate data."

How many people using this network only post content to their own domain? Answer: None. Obviously, if you only post content to your own domain, you wouldn't be a member of Ryze.

Listen, you have to be "where the eyes are." You cannot always bring the eyes to where you happen to reside. Come to think of it, isn't that why folks advertise in the newspaper, on the radio and TV? The fact individuals who chose to advertise there do not own that domain does not prevent them from paying to use it. Now, if they could do it for free, do you think they would first take a look at the TOS? And, if it said something similar to what the Ryze TOS states, do you think they would suddenly abstain from advertising?

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Lindy,

Ting's has been using Twitter for some time. Yes, Ting's has a Twitter following...thanks in part to its Squidoo lens. There are actually numerous online tools which can assist in making this automation happen - including Jott, 30 Boxes, Outlook, Outlook Express and Intellect.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Russ Jackman

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

@Lamar ... He then says, "These are direct-mail coupons. They work amazingly well." But then he says, "This is so redundant. I have to keep doing this over-and-over again to the same people. What I want to do is build a following."

Yes! He certainly does have to keep doing this over-and-over again to the same people.

Notice how Billboards & Bus advertising are popular. .... Same message to same folks every day.

Each message pre-amplifies the next one and re-emphasizes the previous.

See: "Are 27 contacts really necessary to make the sale"?    Here

"Also, I believe database management can provide better customer care than printed coupons."

"I Believe"? ..... Believe my eye! ... The database can easily be worth much more than the underlying business!

Want to know how to massage your mailing list?   Study what Nordstrom, Columbia House and Readers Digest send you.

Bestest.

Teddy Towncrier CPP Towncrier-Media.com Supercharging Your Visions.

Listen to this:

1) You should not use Twitter because there may be another DOS attack.

2) You should not use Ryze, Squidoo, 30 Boxes or just about any online service (especially the FREE ones) because the TOS may collect data on the users.

3) The only thing you can do is collect data manually AT THE RESTAURANT.

That destroys the whole effort! You might as well go back to printing those expensive coupons and sending them out via direct mail. What happens when you do that? Yes, you get customers to come into the restaurant to get a discount on a meal. But, you do not build a relationship with them. So, every time you finish one coupon campaign you have to start over. This is like the little rodent in that spinning cage. It runs real hard in that cage, but it doesn't go anywhere.

The restaurant wants to be seen as a special venue for its community. That is why FREE Wi-Fi is offered there. The FREE Wi-Fi helps counter the bad cell phone service in the area. Once again, this is game theory in operation.

When people freely provide content via email to Ting's, that is a form of Web 2.0 innovation coming into play - at least from my perspective. But now, even Scott Wolpott, who lives in New York City, is telling me to set up an old PC INSIDE the restaurant. And, Russ Jackman is suggesting I dress up in a fish costume and walk around outside the restaurant to attract attention to it. Well, that might work in New York City or Toronto, but not in Mayberry RFD Land. There would not be enough people laughing in the parking lot to attract a crowd out here.

I feel like I have entered into a parallel universe where everything is upside down. All of a sudden, you should not use the Internet to bring people together. But then, why are you here reading this post? Just look at all the people who have bothered to comment thus far.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Reg Charie

@Lindy Asimus. "Lamar why all this when Tings can do exactly what they want and get their followers on Twitter and be done with it. "

Fab idea for a complemental campaign, Lindy! .... Typical Tweet "Hot deal at Tings 50% off between 4-10 on Thursday. Coupon code 6789AB .. Please RT"

Sending that to 50,000 adoring followers would put a few bums on seats.

It works nicely for WholeFoods, Texas     and J.R. Cohen uses Twitter to double his Texas coffee shop business.   More

See "Using Twitter to market locally"     More

Remember to incorporate an effective viral component into the campaign.

Bestest.

Teddy Towncrier CPP Towncrier-Media.com Supercharging Your Visions.

Private Reply to Lindy Asimus

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Teddy,

With regard to Twitter, "Yes, we can do that." Right now, in fact, every time Ting's posts a message to Twitter, that message also goes onto the Squidoo lens as well. Thanks to Jott.com, the restaurant owner does not even have to type the message. He can speak it by making a toll-free phone call to Jott.

However, the idea of using Send Out Cards, an MLM (for goodness sake) is totally out of the question so far as I am concerned. This is a printed announcement. This is just what I want Tings to get away from doing. This is like mailing coupons - only more expensive.

Listen, once the person is IN the database - be it on the desktop or 30 Boxes - why go to the expense to send a card if a simple email requesting a phone call to the restaurant will get the job done? We are not trying to impress people with birthday cards. The restaurant wants to focus on impressing its public with a birthday venue. While it would be possible to collect data at the restaurant - "Fill out this card and place it in the fish bowl" - I would also place a landing page link in press releases that go to the local media. I want to bring folks into the fold without them having to first come into the restaurant. Once people know how to find Ting's online, they can tell others how to find Ting's online. We want the mechanics of the third-party referral to kick in here, big-time. Seth Godin, the best-selling author of books about marketing, encourages small business folks to do something "remarkable." As he points out, that word remarkable means more than amazing. It means "something worth being remarked about." When something is remarkable, people talk about it. I think those Apple TV commercials are remarkable. I talk about them all the time.

Well, my hope is that people will soon start talking about Ting's Thai Kitchen as a remarkable venue. Why? Because it serves Thai cuisine? No, not totally. I want this restaurant to be seen as remarkable because it nurtures its community in numerous ways - not just food. I want to set the stage for the public to figure that out. The next thing you know, you have perpetual motion driving the Ting's Thai Kitchen engine. It is a mutual uplift win/win situation between the public and the restaurant.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Russ Jackman

Scott,

On October 4th, I am going to start Social Media Sunday Brunches at Ting's Thai Kitchen. There is going to be a meal and then a presentation. And, no this is not a freebie. People will pay for the meal and the presentation in advance via Paypal. I will actually invoice each person wanting to attend. Ting's is a small restaurant. But, we can set aside a section for just 12 people. History has shown that can things can be accomplished when you start out with a small band of passionate people. I can make a presentation using a computer and a 24" ASUS LCD monitor. I am going to bring people from all over the county to this restaurant. They are learn about Skype, Yugma, Squidoo, Ryze and Twitter up close and personal. I am going to encourage them to join my Ryze network, Clusters (those living in South Lake County will also be encouraged to join the town hall network on Ning.com) and form small groups which help each other out. Included in each group will be one "virtual member" from my database of Cluster mentors. I am going to educate this entire county through these 12-member Sunday brunches. I will attempt to do them every Sunday from October to the end of the year. I may end up skipping a few weeks here and there, but I am going to make the attempt.

I am convinced the the key to doing big things is small group collaboration. I may also be speaking to the regional Chamber of Commerce in October. In addition, I plan to be a vendor at the local Coyote Valley Community Plaza in October. I am currently trying to convince Coca-Cola and Bsquare Technologies to come here and showcase their new Cocoa-Cola Freestyle Dispenser. If I am successful in doing that, we should have a tremendous crowd because this is Pepsico country. If Coke ventures in here with a new innovation, that should draw resort folks from all over the county to this area. Why? Because it suddenly becomes in their best financial interest to show up.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Lamar .... Tell Charlie ... "Xxxx Xxxx is going to call you. .... He's already donated his resources to our community;   He's a valuable resource for me and will fill those seats for you without any fuss or added burden to you" ... If you're serious about a implementing a solid strategy ... I'll have him call you". ..... (This should be a face to face communication and not communicated via an email).

Then get out of the way and let it happen.

Just make sure you have a firm comittment from "Xxxx Xxxx" that he's provided for a juicy referral fee for you.

The Karma could be better, here. This small project is being hacked to death and is close to evaporating.

Bestest.

Teddy Towncrier CPP Towncrier-Media.com Supercharging Your Visions.

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Russ,

I very much appreciate your advice. I realize if you did not care, you would not give it. I fully understand that. I do not mean to come across as being defensive. However, it is very difficult to convince someone who already has a FREE Squidoo lens to spend the money to purchase a domain name and pay some webmaster to manage it for the purpose of achieving what he has already seen be accomplished on his own free Squidoo lens. And, I am not saying your advice, along with Scott and Reg is wrong. What I am saying is it is a difficult argument to win with someone who shares a very different perspective.

With regard to the Twitter option, I am in full agreement. Just two Twitter posts some time ago is ridiculous. It is going to take some coaching to get the management to use this tool on a regular basis. What we are talking about here is creating new habits. Listen, this entire county needs to create new habits. The regional Chamber of Commerce started a social media series this year for that very purpose. This comes THREE YEARS after I personally handed the Chamber's executive director a CD I created for her about Skype. To this day I doubt that she has put Skype on her computer. This is the equivalent of people being too busy to learn how to drive a car because they are too busy walking everywhere they need to go.

Do you have city directories in your libraries there in Canada? We have them in Atlanta. But, guess what happens out here in Mayberry when you call the local library to inquire about a city directory? First, you are told they don't have the directory. Then, you get told no such directory even exists - not for Lake County. That's interesting. Why? Because the library is wrong. There is a Lake & Mendocino Haines City Directory. But, our public library system here is so backward it does not even know what it has. And no, it's not an online directory. It's a bound and printed directory. An online directory is what Lake County does not have. And, can you guess why? Because the data needed for the directory has never been transferred to computer from microfiche. And, with all the economic problems California is currently having, I doubt that microfiche information is going to make it onto a computer database anytime soon.

Bottom line, your comments and insights are always welcome by me. But, please understand, their implementation may be not be quite so easy.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Scott,

Remember, I got Fox News to come to Middletown. I got Gov. Schwarzenegger to write a letter for the Hardesters Shopping Center's Spring Fling. I currently have more people signed up for the Middletown Area Town Hall Network than currently show up for the monthly meetings. I have a professor of Public Relations from Golden State University planning to attend this kick-off luncheon and to introduce me. (This was actually her idea, not mine.) I think I can get 12 people to come for a Sunday Brunch - and pay to be there. Of course, I may end up eating those words...but I am definitely determined to do this.)

I think a BNI group would be great for this community. That is actually what the Middletown Area Business Association should be. However, this group went from a membership of 150 down to 49. It's dying and desperately needs to be brought back to life. The problem here is that folks either do not CARE or lack the skills to execute CARE properly.

If you visit the Squidoo lens for last May's Spring Fling, notice how many of the merchants listed bothered to send a letter to the site. They were all instructed to do this. Why didn't they do it? All that was required was to send me an email. They did not care. They are an undisciplined bunch.

This whole deal about sending out coupons or birthday cards like SendOut Cards is a gamble. It is just "luck." There is no game theory to it. You're playing with numbers - not people. You can visit sites like the Direct Marketing Association and they will even tell you in advance what you can likely expect in terms of a rate-of-response from a mailing based upon the numbers. You're dealing with numbers as opposed to flesh-and-blood people. Let's change that paradigm and place the focus on the importance of the individual as a person who needs to receive value.

Well, I have actually witnessed this happening more than once. Therefore, I know it is something that can be repeated BY DESIGN. I conducted two seminars that were successful and not one penny in paid advertising was spent. Why? Because third-party referrals did the work of promotion for me.

The population for Hidden Valley Lake, which is a gated bedroom residential community is around 6,000. I believe we have between 2,200 and 2,500 homes in the area. It was originally designed to be a retirement community. That is one reason there is a golf course and country club here. But, today the majority of the residents here do not even play golf. What am I going to sell at the Coyote Community Plaza? Well, I am going to multi-task. I am going to enroll folks in the town hall network and Clusters. All anyone needs to do is drop a business card in a vase and I will email them an invitation link to both networks. I am going to promote my PR service. If Coke shows up, their dispenser will be in my space. If I can do Skype conferences with special guests from Nokia, Skype or other technological resources, I will provide that as well. In addition, I will be providing "goodie bags." (More about that on another thread. I have a friend in Canada doing something special in regard to that.) It will make sense for Coke to show up in my tiny market because I am located right between to big center of influence here in Northern California - Sacramento (state capital) and San Francisco. Therefore, I can pull from both areas. And, if I can get the local high school students to engage in a marketing campaign at them as I did with Gov. Schwarzenegger, Steve Jobs, George Lucas and other folks you have never even heard of, I think Coke will come. Fox came here in 2006. It only took letters from 30 high school students and the buzz they created.

Whether you look at Squidoo, Twitter or Facebook, the reason for success I believe is the same. It's third-party endorsement that drives the train. The train chugs along because the people who ride on it contribute to the fuel. And, that is what I believe can happen with Ting's.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Heidi Caswell

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Private Reply to Heidi Caswell

Private Reply to Heidi Caswell

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Private Reply to Lindy Asimus

Private Reply to Heidi Caswell

Heidi,

I have a lot of friends who use SendOut Cards - despite the fact it is an MLM, not because of it. However, did you know the US Postal Service provides the same service. Just so you know, folks do have a choice.

I really appreciate Russ Jackman's advice regarding the warning of a possible TOS violation in using 30 Boxes in a commercial application. I went and inquired of the company to see if placing birthdays and anniversaries on their calendar by a restaurant operation - as opposed to an individual - was a problem. They responded via email that doing so was not a problem for them. However, 30 Boxes did not respond to my question about how they were going to use the contact information. But, in looking at a lot of TOS'es since Russ brought this to my attention, it appears that just about everybody does this sort of thing. Google does this big-time. Are we not to use Google because it gathers information about us?

I asked Squidoo if I could remove the Google ads from one of my Squidoo lenses and replace them with other Google ads I thought would be more appropriate. Guess what I was told? I was told there was nothing they could do. If I had a problem with the Google ads perhaps I should not use the service. Well, I did not expect that kind of response. I actually expected them to work with me on this in some fashion. I wonder if I were to contact Google, the response would be similar? Or, perhaps there is a way they can replace one Google ad on a Squidoo site with another?

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Lindy Asimus

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Lamar .... Your No1 project today is;   Send Heidi flowers accompanied by a $20 card with only "Lamar" written on it.

This is **NOT** the time for a phone call.

Hopefully you'll get 10% cred back, sometime within the next 10 years..

Bestest.

Teddy Towncrier CPP Towncrier-Media.com Supercharging Your Visions.

Private Reply to Reg Charie

Private Reply to Heidi Caswell

That's a classy pitch, Heidi.

I'd be glad to modify slightly and use it as a recommended resource in my blog. ... PM me and let me know.

Bestest.

Teddy Towncrier CPP Towncrier-Media.com Supercharging Your Visions.

Heidi,

Thanks for all the advice. I really do appreciate it. As a matter of fact, I have my own domain name. I have had it for several years. I got that domain name with the help of someone on this very network - not from someone I looked up in the Yellow Pages.

There was a time that I used to help an MLM deceive the public. I helped them make a weekly meeting room cold so the resistance to the "business opportunity" would decrease. I helped create the "rah rah" cheerleader atmosphere with the obnoxiously loud music knowing full well its purpose was to psychologically boost sales. I was actually schooled in all those MLM tricks for one reason - TO CHEAT people who trusted me. Well, I got fed up with doing business that way.

Any business can choose to be about "personal service." That is certainly NOT the exclusive domain of an MLM. What is the exclusive domain of the MLM world is the FREE SALESFORCE. In the real corporate world of business, you are paid to be trained by your employer. Your corporate employer sees you as an investment. The reason he invests in you is because he desires to reap a profit from your skills, which he gladly nurtures.

The MLM world is focused on appealing to an individual's basic needs and dreams - not so much for the individual's benefit as for the MLM's own revenue. You often hear MLM's chant the mantra, "You're in business for yourself, but not by yourself." But, whose money is being spent? It's not the MLM's money. It's ALL your money that is being spent. It's all YOUR TIME that is being spent, too - whether you make sales or not.

In the corporate world, you can lose your job for a variety of reasons. In the MLM world, there is usually just one reason why you lose your job - you lost too much of your own money trying to promote the MLM's business. But, what did the MLM lose? Nothing. More than likely, it actually gained by replacing you with someone who had more money to throw at marketing programs, business opportunity meetings and conferences. An good MLM masters the art of promoting "the process." It's not just interested in providing a product or service. It's main interest lies in building an ever-expanding community of FREE Salespeople.

I also thank all the programmers here that volunteered advice. Had it not been for the advice provided by the two Russ' here, I doubt I would have asked as many question to 30 Boxes and Squidoo as I have in recent days. I still use Squidoo. I still use 30 Boxes. But, now there is a difference. I have a better understanding of the relationship. And, a relationship, if you do it justice, is something you can build upon.

Building upon relationships is what business networking is all about. Willing to be a "goto" person for other people is what netweaving is all about. However, talking the talk is of little real value. What's needed is a plan - a design for demonstrating the true value of both networking and netweaving. As I type this message a fellow Ryzer in Canada is helping me put together a special program to focus a world of Ryzer attention upon the Coyote Valley Community Plaza in Hidden Valley Lake, CA. The idea is NOT simply to create a "buzz" for this community plaza's Thursday Market, but to focus attention on all those Ryzer businesses who demonstrate they CARE.

Stay tuned. You may be surprised at what is willingly done for you to help spread YOUR MESSAGE.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Heidi Caswell

Heidi,

We have really gotten off track here. This thread was not supposed to be about MLM's, SendOut Cards or anything like that. It was supposed to be about an online calendar API. That calendar happened to be created by a company called 30 Boxes.

Yes, we can agree to disagree about MLM's. I have a lot of friends who use SendOut Cards and are very pleased with the service. For the record, I applaud anyone for taking time and effort to make life better for inner city children. But please, let's not change the focus of this entire thread. You and others have shared thoughts on the matter. Let's return to the topic. (If you want to talk about the greatness of SendOut Cards and other MLM's, start your own independent thread. Please do not hijack this one.)

A few days ago I posted an SMR (Social Media Release) through the Pitchengine service about what Ting's Thai Kitchen plans to do for birthdays and anniversaries. Pitchengine tracks the folks who check out SMR's. The number of viewers of this SMR in less than 3 days are impressive - especially when you realize this is a rural area. I was over at Ting's today and learned that people are already responding to the SMR via email. This is just what I had hoped would happen. However, the restaurant owner now wants to change his email address. He wants an email address that is solely devoted to his online calendar promotion. So, tonight he is going to set up a Gmail account and send me a new email address to place into his Squidoo lens.

I believe I mentioned before that I contacted 30 Boxes and they do not have a problem so far as the TOS is concerned with me using the calendar to keep track of birthdays for a restaurant, a commercial venue. If they do not see that matter as a conflict of their TOS, who am I to argue the point? Keep in mind we still have a back-up on the desktop should something with 30 Boxes go wrong.

Ting's is eager to expand its Twitter audience by placing special card announcements in its front window regarding "specials" - in particular, seafood specials. Ting's has a connection in nearby Santa Rosa wherein it can get fresh seafood at a good wholesale price. But, once the seafood arrives at the restaurant, it needs to sell rather quickly - as this restaurant does not have a high-priced refrigeration system for seafood. The hope is that thanks to Twittering the restaurant will be able to sell out of the seafood the same day it comes in. The idea is that the seafood will be pre-sold before it is even ordered.

Today, the manager of Ting's recorded a message to my Skype phone that will be transferred to my Nokia N810 to share with the management of the Greenview Restaurant - it's nearby neighbor which has yet to realize the benefits of Wi-Fi in the restaurant venue. If the recorded message is successful, these two restaurants will end up having something in common with Apple and Microsoft. They will be giving each other a "mutual uplift."

Ting's Wi-Fi signal will be enhanced to cover the entire shopping center with the help of an outdoor Wi-Fi antenna. The Greenview Restaurant will be able to share that signal both inside and outside its restaurant with the help of Wi-Fi extenders. If the Greenview Restaurant is willing to pay for the antenna and extenders to expand the range of the Wi-Fi signal, Ting's Thai Kitchen will gladly continue to pay for the Wi-Fi signal.

One additional innovation was being considered today. Ting's wants to entice traffic outside the county to come party at its restaurant and receive a 15% discount. Specifically, Ting's would like to offer a 15% discount to anyone dining in the restaurant who can show by his driver's license that he is not a resident of Lake County. I think I should remind the owner that this county is known as the Meth Capital of the World. We do have a lot of crooks here. Making fraudulent driver licenses should not be too much of a problem for them. Perhaps Ting's should rethink that promotional idea?

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Reg Charie

Reg,

The reason the restaurant wants a different email address is because the one they already have gets too much email. The last thing they want to do is add to it. He did not tell me that when I set the system up. But, today he told me he planned to get a second email address - a Gmail address.

The restaurant simply wants to collect birthday and anniversary data. I do not think they desire to brand themselves with an email address. I know he does not have his own domain name. He simply uses the Squidoo lens I created for him. He's had it for more than a year. No real problems. The fact that there are competing ads on the Squidoo lens has not proven to be a problem. Keep in mind that his is the only Thai restaurant in the entire southern end of the county. And, there is only one other Thai restaurant in the county. Plus, Ting's Thai Kitchen was actually voted the Number 1 restaurant in the entire county by the folks who live here, according to a county-wide competition put together by the county's only TV station, a public access channel. To be that popular the restaurant must be doing something right.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Scott,

Have you forgotten, it was Althea Garner who visited Middletown back in 2005 and introduced business networking to a crowd of Middletown Merchant Association members at the famous Calpine Visitors Center. She was also in the town's annual Western parade earlier that day. A few years later she gifted the town with their own Ryze network when she left Ryze. Unfortunately, the town did not embrace the network - even though it was renamed, "Project Middletown." Most of the folks who were members of "Project Middletown" did not even live in California, let alone the Middletown area.

I decided to change the focus of the Ryze network from Middletown. I felt what was needed for the small business community was a small group focus. In reading the book, The Heart and Art of Netweaving I feel as though I have latched onto something that can have a profound impact on small business prosperity. Some folks call it "wikinomics." I call it mutual collaboration with a mutual uplift. People willingly helping other people out can have a profound impact on a community. Unfortunately, what I tend to see all to often is the exact opposite - sometimes even sabotage. Yes, I have actually witnessed people purposefully hurting other folks who were making a special effort to help them. How absurd! Yet, it's a common occurrence out here in Mayberry. For example, how many places do you know took 28 YEARS to get a viable town hall started?

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Scott,

I am desperately trying to get the folks in Lake County to embrace the Internet. The fact is they are not there yet. Kelly Cox, the county administrator, commissioned the Univ. of California at Chico to create an online map showing where all the broadband signals were. The idea, I suppose, is that somewhere down the road they will know where to install more cable lines. But, right now, a lot of folks in my county are without high-speed Internet access. So, it should not seem so surprising that many are still not Internet savvy. They still do not have the tools to do it.

What is interesting to me is that I was encouraged to come to the county courthouse to learn about more broadband coming into the area only to find the whole ordeal was instead about mapping the county's broadband signal strength. This in and of itself is of no help to anyone needing high-speed Internet access right now. But, my tax dollars went to make it happen.

At the meeting, I was also asked to look over a survey which was to circulated regarding this mapping project. Well, everyone who attended this meeting had to sign-in and provide contact information. I figured they wanted to keep me in the loop for future meetings. But, once the map was done and online, guess what? I get an email asking for contributions. This project was already funded with my tax dollars. Now, I am being hit up for a donation to a funded project that is of absolutely no use to me whatsoever. Why? Because I already have high-speed Internet access. Why didn't someone at the meeting I attended bother to tell me they planned to do this. Why not be honest and up-front with people you coerce to a meeting? Is this any way for a county governing body and a university to behave?

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901

Private Reply to Scott Wolpow

Private Reply to Lindy Asimus

Lindy,

This is complicated. I have been exchanging emails with Lake County officials. The map demographics map which I was sent an email for and a request to purchase does not include the broadband strength map. That is a totally different map. I did not realize that. I am to get more feedback from the Univ. of California at Chico about this at a later date once the school year begins.

What people often ask for out here and what they end up doing is not always the same. It makes life out here a little confusing at times.

Lamar Morgan
CDMM - Synergistic Business Marketing
707-709-8605
Need PR?...Call Lamar!

Private Reply to Lamar Morgan 954-603-7901