Advertising 101

  I was not a perfect preacher’s kid.   I was simply a preacher’s kid.  I possessed all the flaws of most boys and couldn’t (or wouldn’t) stop pursuing most of the things I wasn’t allowed to – especially the alluring forbidden fruit.    I can only imagine how much of an embarrassment I was to my mother and father.  While my father preached about the evils of sin I couldn’t help but think; hey – if it’s so bad it must be good!   I was wrong.  Dad was right.

A few years after my father passed away I was given his diaries.    He kept a daily written record of his life from 1931 until 1986.  There were over 50 diaries and I read every page of every book.   You can imagine what I was looking for.  What did he say about me?  My troubled years occurred between 1955 and 1958. That’s when I caused my parents the most grief.   What was he thinking about me and my actions back then?  I was undeniably curious – and not just a little concerned about what my dad had written about me during those years. That’s when I discovered the missing pages.  Not one word could be found about his trials and tribulations with his prodigal son.  He didn’t number the pages.  He headed each diary entry with the day and date then proceeded to record what happened on that day.  The tell-tale signs my father reviewed his entries and had second thoughts about what should be left behind were in the missing dates.  There was also subtle evidence some pages were ripped out of the book.

I paid for my sins.  Many times I was subjected to quite painful punishment.  During the 50’s it was not only fashionable for fathers to inflict physical punishment on their wayward sons – it was expected.  I never knew how my dad felt about his dispensing of justice until he was 82 years old.  I was 42 years of age when I attended a dear niece’s wedding in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.  Her father and my dad (both ministers) conducted the wedding ceremony.   When it was time to say goodbye and head back to Toronto my father asked me for a minute of my time.  Of course I agreed.  We stepped out of the house onto the freshly painted grey front porch when my dad said; Son, I need your forgiveness.  He went on to say; “I have never forgiven myself for the way I treated you when you got into trouble”.  He then told me how sorry he was to have been so tough on me during my difficult teen years.    I really hadn’t given much thought to what happened to me all those many years ago.  I said; “dad, you did what you thought you should back then.   I hold no grudges.  And yes you are forgiven.”   We embraced and told each other how proud we were of each other.   Then I slid into the driver’s seat of my tiny rental car and headed for the Regina Airport.   As I drove the fifty miles to the Regina airport I could barely see through the tears.  That moment – that confession – that father’s love will stay with me for the rest of my life.

We all do things we regret.   I sure have.  Maybe it’s a good idea to tear out the pages from our past we are not particularly proud of.  Who really wants to know the bad stuff?

I think it is important to leave a written record of what we did and what we thought.  I also believe we should pass along the lessons we learned so our descendants can avoid our mistakes.  They may even be encouraged by what we leave behind.  That will be our legacy.  We cared enough to leave a note – a road map.

By all means we should pour it all out – the pain and gains.  But we should also take the time to review what we said and leave some missing pages.

 

Ross Campbell

Have you heard the good news?   Sellers of high ticket items will never again have to make those dreaded ‘cold calls’.  It sounds wonderful doesn’t it?   But is it true?  Some new-age Marketing Guru’s are even suggesting a virtual tsunami’s of leads will come your way simply by becoming a ‘recognized’ Leading Expert on your subject.  Never again will you have to call somebody up out-of-the-blue to try and set up an interview.  Or sell something.

 

It sure sounds good.  Too bad it’s not necessarily true.  And becoming THE Leading Expert is certainly not as simple as it sounds.  It’s also very risky to stop making cold calls while you’re becoming a Leading Authority.   I think the idea of becoming an authority on a subject is a great idea.  Combine the two (Known Expert and Cold-Calling) and you’ve got the beginning of a real winning strategy.  At some point maybe you won’t have to make any more cold calls. Maybe.

 

I’ve been selling advertising almost all my working life.  Advertising is a big-ticket item.  Over the course of the past 48 years I’ve noticed a common thread; most of my clients came to me as a direct result of someone referring me or the company I worked for.   This happened during the early days when I sold radio time.  And it continued when I began selling Advertising Agency Services.  I didn’t have to make cold calls to earn the first two-thirds of my income.   It’s the other third of my sales and profit that never would have happened without making cold calls.  Before the internet and websites (boy that sure makes me sound old doesn’t it?) it was advantageous to work for a recognized company.  No radio station in Canada had more recognition than CFRB back in the seventies and I was privileged to work for them.  And a lot of businesses did call the radio station to ask about rates and such.  The reality though was if I didn’t get the final third of my sales I would have been fired.  And if I didn’t top up my business sales by the final third there’d be no profit.

 

I love the idea of becoming the recognized expert in any field.    There’s a cost to it though.  To become the leading expert you and I will have invest in promotion.  We will also have to invest a ton of time in re-defining our personal brand as the ‘Expert’.    I do like the idea of becoming the go-to guy in my industry.  But I still think all us salespeople will have to continue making sales calls. Yes I mean cold-calls.  At the very least we’ll need somebody to make those calls for us.  Not everyone on our target lists of potential customers is out looking for you or me on our website.  They won’t find us unless they accidentally stumble onto our site.  I don’t like those odds.  I’d rather call them.

 

I’m going to learn all I can about creating an avalanche of sales leads on the internet.  I like creating and disseminating my ‘content’ on the internet.  But I will continue to make cold calls.  I’m not even sure I like the new paradigm.  I’ve met some great people by making cold calls.

 

I’ll be having more to say on becoming THE expert in your field.  It really is a great idea. Stay tuned.

 

Ross Campbell

 

I can’t think of a single instance where I’ve achieved anything of significance without the help of a friend or a group of friends.  Every major piece of business I’ve secured has been a direct result of someone referring me or saying good things about me.  Every triumph in my life can be directly attributed to the grace and support of the most important people in my life – my family and friends.  And I am grateful and humbled by their confidence.

Last month I spoke to a group of 200 business people in Ottawa about what it takes to capitalize on our connections.   Before my presentation I met with several of the conference attendees.  I asked them all the same question; “what does Capitalizing on Connections mean to you?”   The responses were predictable and consistent.   The most common response was; “capitalizing on Connections means having a friend who can help me.”   You bet.  Friends make all the difference in our lives.  Friends give us perspective, relevance and meaning.  They cheer with us!  They bleed with us.  Thank God for friends.

Capitalizing on connections is not about manipulating our friends.  It has nothing to do with scrounging Leaf Tickets from people we know (even though it is nice when that happens). 

Capitalizing on connections is about being worthy of the trust of our many connections.

Our family and friends are the most important connections in our life.  Every one of them must know we will always do what we say we will.  No exceptions.  We must be supporters and encouragers in all our relationships.  We must listen.  We must give value.  We must be respectful of everyone around us. 

We capitalize on our connections when we earn the right to spend time with people who inspire us. People who dream big dreams.  People who share our goals.  Our friends.

I love the old Irish Saying: There a good ships and wood ships, the kind that sail the seas.  But the best ships are friendships.  And may they always be.

Stay connected!

Ross Campbell

 

Have you ever thought of writing a book?  You should.  What would you write about?  A good start will be writing about your life?  Your life is really a series of fascinating stories.  Think about it.  Think again what it will mean to your family and friends.  Think about your descendents when they come looking for some history about you.

I recently produced a book for my late sister which will be presented to her family and the entire Campbell Clan this summer.  We’re having a Campbell Family Reunion in the Rocky Mountains in Alberta in August.  It will be a time to celebrate family and the life and precious memory of my cherished sister.

Two weeks before she died I received a manuscript from her and a request to put her memoirs into a book.  She told me her writing wasn’t fancy or necessarily a literary piece of art.  It was simply a reflection on the times of her life that was special to her.  She thought her children and their offspring would appreciate knowing more about her life.  I think she was right.  Generations of descendents will appreciate learning about the trials and tribulations of a special mother, grandmother and great grandmother who would otherwise only be known by a faded photograph.

My parents both wrote books about their life experiences.  The stories are riveting.  We learned about the hardship they and their parents endured as new Homesteaders in the Prairies.  We learned about their anguish dealing with Great Depression.  Absolutely fascinating and indelible images of a time most of us cannot fully comprehend.  Our entire family is grateful for their effort and the legacy we get to share with all of our immediate and extended families.

When your descendents decide to search their roots you can be sure they will be captivated by your struggles – and your triumphs.  If you write a book.  Your stories won’t always be pretty.  Life stories are not fairy tales.  We live in an imperfect world and live lives that are far from perfect.  We make mistakes.  We also do some things extraordinarily well and they deserve to be told.  It’s the sum of all our experiences that shape our lives and make us what we are.

Write a book.  Start now.  I am.

Ross Campbell

Have you ever thought of writing a book?  You should.  What would you write about?  How about your life?  Your life is really a series of fascinating stories.  Think about it.  Think about what it will mean to your family and friends.  Think about your descendents when they come looking for some history about you.

I recently produced a book for my late sister which will be presented to her family and the entire Campbell Clan this summer.  We’re having a Campbell Family Reunion in the Rocky Mountains in Alberta in August.  It will be a time to celebrate family and the life and precious memory of my cherished sister.

Two weeks before she died I received a manuscript from her and a request to put her memoirs into a book.  She told me her writing wasn’t fancy or necessarily a literary piece of art.  It was simply a reflection on the times of her life that was special to her.  She thought her children and their offspring would appreciate knowing more about her life.  I think she was right.  Generations of descendents will appreciate learning about the trials and tribulations of a special mother, grandmother and great grandmother who would otherwise only be known by a faded photograph.

My parents both wrote books about their life experiences.  The stories are riveting.  We learned about the hardship they and their parents endured as new Homesteaders on the Prairies.  We learned about their anguish dealing with Great Depression.  Absolutely fascinating and indelible images of a time most of us cannot fully comprehend.  Our entire family is grateful for their effort and the legacy we get to share with all of our immediate and extended families.

When your descendents decide to search their roots you can be sure they will be captivated by your struggles – and your triumphs.  If you write a book.  Your stories won’t always be pretty.  Life stories are not fairy tales.  We live in an imperfect world and live lives that are far from perfect.  We make mistakes.  We also do some things extraordinarily well and they deserve to be told.  It’s the sum of all our experiences that shape our lives and make us what we are.

Write a book.  Start now.  I am.

Ross Campbell

Tim Sanders, the author of “The Likeability Factor” wrote the preface of Michael Port’s book; “Book Yourself Solid”.  He used this old saying, and I just love it:

 

“Long after people forget what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel.”

 

Isn’t that the truth?

 

Have you ever noticed the similarities between politics and religion?  No? Think about it.

A fundamental plank of many religions is the existence of heaven and hell.  The message is; if you’re good you go to heaven.  If you’re bad you go to hell.   Now listen to the messages from the main three political parties in this Federal Election.  What are they saying?  A vote for the other party is a sure fire way to find yourself in hell.   No jobs.  Lousy health care.  Soup kitchens.  Hell on earth.  But, a vote for them will take you straight to paradise.  A chicken in every pot.  And bibitty bobitty boo!!

Even before this election was called, there were negative ads flashing across our TV screens.  The messages have all warned us of the evils of the other guys.   Here’s what some of the message say: He’s dictatorial.  That one is astonishingly mean-spirited.  The other guy really isn’t a very good Canadian.  And the one who can’t possible become the Prime Minister, you can’t take seriously.  That was just the warm-up.  Now we’re really in the thick of it.   But thank the Lord it’s almost over.  So who will the winner be?  I think it’ll be the one who is perceived to be the least dangerous.  He may be a devil, but he’s likeable.

From the very first debate many people thought Jack Layton came across as the most likeable.  He had nothing to lose.  His friendly face and easy-going and folksy manners have done more for the NDP cause than any amount of paid advertising could do.

I found it funny when Candidate Mike said; an election is not a time for personality contests!   It may not be right, but oh yes election campaigns are personality contests.  If only Steve and Mike came across friendlier!  Think it would have made a difference?  I do.  Unfortunately.

I can’t wait for Monday, May 2^nd.  I’m hoping the result will take me straight to heaven.