This category contains ways to invest in your atmosphere. This might be a fresh coat of paint, displaying artwork from local artists, or selecting music appropriate to your brand. People will pay more for the experience. For example, in blind taste tests, most folks have chosen Dunkin’ Donuts versus Starbucks coffee. Dunkin’ Donuts goes for about .97 cents per cup. Starbucks sells their coffee for $4.00, but they also provide their patrons with a warm atmosphere, hip music, and the luxury of wireless Internet access and in doing so, they create a meeting place. People will pay for the atmosphere—the experience—the opportunity to belong to a cool culture.

Very simply, this category asks you to think about what are you doing to be an advocate for your community. What are you doing to assist the local, national or international community? How are you getting involved and how are you giving back? Community involvement is typically something that requires more of your time but less of your capital, so if you're operating on a budget, these ideas are for you. Begin by asking yourself the question, "How may I help?" Then, pick the lucky cause, charity, board or group and begin helping as an ambassador of your organization. Maybe you help out with an annual event. Maybe you have something to offer by volunteering on an advisory board. Whatever direction you choose, be sure your efforts are a reflection of the values you hold close to your heart. The cause you support must inspire you on a deep, personal level. Otherwise, you'll tire quickly and may end up abandoning the effort before you've even begun and that is not the way to build a reputation for quality.

From fundraisers to employee appreciation events, this section contains ideas on what an organization can do to bring people together. In bringing people together for one common purpose, we create community. The folks who collect to take part in any event are all sharing that common thread. Events can be a powerful way to bring value to your community, as well as a great vehicle for marketing your brand. When you produce an event, attendees bond with your brand in two ways. First, they obviously bond with you as their host, but secondly-and more subtly-they bond with each other. Now, you may feel that if they're networking with each other, they're not being mindful of you in that instance, but as memories and connections are made around your event, your own brand recognition is strengthened in the minds and hearts of those who have attended. Events can be a powerful way to strengthen your brand while bringing value to your community.

You've determined you're going to have an event and, by now, you know what it is going to be. Now what? How do you get the word out? This category provides you with ideas and tips for publicizing your event so that it can be successful.

This is where we discuss the brand "signatures", such as your logo, brochures, business cards, websites, et cetera. Your marketing materials are not to be confused with your brand! Branding is a phenomenon that occurs in the mind of the consumer. Branding is not a logo or catchy tagline; these are expressions of the brand. You must take the expression of your brand seriously, for a badly managed brand can erode your image in the marketplace.

One of the best ways to promote an idea, event, or yourself is to build a relationship with your local media. Free press can be granted to you through newspaper, television, radio, and the Internet if you've taken the time to foster those relationships, or if you can bring value to their efforts and the local community. This section provides tips on working with your local media to bring awareness to your effort through press releases, public service announcements, editorials, interviews and more.

The current statistics for cold-calling success rates state that for every 100 cold calls you make, you can expect about three appointments, out of which you might score one sale. Does this sound like an efficient use of your time? Networking is the art of connection. It is the starting point in the relationship-building process. In its simplest form, networking is a subtle, soft-sell approach to marketing. In its most powerful form, it is a means of building a very efficient, highly proactive team of partners who can provide you with an endless flow of referrals. People do business with people they know, like and trust. The first of those criteria is to know you. This is why we network.

Far be it from Dreamscape Multimedia to exclude one of our favorite topics: online marketing. This section covers all facets of marketing your products and services on the World Wide Web. During the Internet boom of the 90's, many companies created websites that were nothing more than online brochures. They did this, primarily, because they were hearing the buzz and feared being left behind. As more and more companies have developed an online presence however, it hasn't been enough to simply be on the Web. As awareness has expanded, so has the initiative to make a company's website a real player in the sales, marketing and production arm of the business. In order to do this, however, you need to know how to draw traffic to your site.

It might seem obvious, but all marketing efforts should begin with a focused plan. Yet so many business owners and nonprofit directors don't have one. Why? It takes work! There can be a lot to look at when developing a comprehensive marketing plan. Competitive analysis, market research, distribution plans, target market, SWOT analysis, branding, positioning, and your marketing mix (channels of choice) are all things that may be considered. Of course, this part of the strategizing is all very technical and scientific (even though most of it will be distilled down into a best guess.) This section addresses a mixture of the science and the magic involved in producing a creative marketing approach.

Many folks don’t know they are supposed to track the return on their invested marketing dollars. Those who have an idea they’re supposed to do this, they’re not usually sure where to begin. Many struggle with advertising here or there, and end up never knowing what has worked and what hasn’t or why. Eventually, they begin to develop advertising apathy. They’re frustrated that sales aren’t going the way they want, they’re out of ideas, they’re unsure about how to proceed (or even if they should proceed!) By using surveys and other means of testing for market response to your efforts, you can begin to shed light on your effectiveness.

(*ROI - Return on Investment)