Cashmobs, Marketing and Your Business
By Carolyn
Howard-Johnson
There's
something new on the online horizon. So far it's being used effectively by
small retailers, but I see no reason why it couldn't also be used by authors to
sell books, or manufacturers to sell particular products and, though it so far
it has been a flashmob phenomenon, why couldn't it be adapted to online fan
pages.
What is it.
It's called
cash mobbing, but check and credit cards are accepted.
It was
started by buy-local advocates. It uses any kind of media including the Web and
traditional media to get loyal folks to support a local business on a specific
day, sometimes at a specific time. They are encouraged to come spend a minimal
amount of money out of loyalty (with, perhaps, a little self interest stirred
into the mix), and people do. They come. They come to be supportive, to feel
part of the crowd, because it's an event, because it's a fad.
Time magazine reports it was started in
2011 by Chris Smith who read that Groupon methods of increasing business using
mass discounts might backfire because retailers or service providers couldn't
sustain the discounts and remain profitable. And he liked the term "cash
mob." The idea was to get people interested and he did. Time reporter Katy Steinmetz says,
"100 of Smith's fellow citizens [in Buffalo, NY] each spent around $10 at
a wine shop with local media in two. He's been hosting cash mobs ever
since."
Then Andrew
Samtoy tried it in Cleveland. And he is using @Cashmobs on Twitter to promote
these events. He is now incorporated as Cash Mobs, Inc. You could use his
service—or do it on your own, but do think of your own name. Samtoy apparently
has a stranglehold on "Cashmobs."
Yours could be the name of your book or store plus the word
"mobs." And do your own promotion.
Of course,
do use the second edition of The Frugal
Book Promoter (http://budurl.com/FrugalBkPromo)
to give you tons of ideas of how to attract the crowds. And A Guide To Frugal In-Store Promotions (http://budurl.com/RetailersGuide) will help retailers with the bling needed to pull a cashmob or any other event. Let's combine a couple
of mottoes. "Just Do It and They Will Come."
Online or
in person.
And, if
they don't? Well, you'll have gotten tons of exposure and maybe even some news
coverage for your efforts. That's called publicity. And it's free.
Carolyn Howard-Johnson is the author of the multi
award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of how-to books—one series for writers,
one for retailers. She was an instructor for UCLA Extension world renowned
Writers' Program for nearly a decade and was named Woman of the Year in Arts
and Entertainment by members of the California Legislature. Learn more about
her at http://HowToDoItFrugally.com.
