More reasons to like Independent Photo Imagers

Ideas for the photo/imaging industry

July 10, 2008

Hello -

Did you know that every single issue of the McCurry Marketing Idea Exchange is archived on line - going all the way back to Issue 1?

Yup. It's free and it's on the Photo/Image News web site.

The graphic that accompanies this paragraph is from the Chris' Camera Center web site, where I've posted a lot of "how-to" articles for my customers.

Meet Lanonah Krumanocker in this week's DIMAcast with Bill McCurry. Lanonah's got two stores in Colorado Springs, a major area about an hour and a quarter south of Denver, Colorado. Her marketing ideas are not necessarily traditional. She does a lot of unique things and seems to party hard! Casino nights, poker tournaments - sounds like it's just a barrel of fun!

But the DIMAcast tells you how they run a tight ship, too.

Says Jon Adams, lead at the downtown Shewmakers store: "salespeople you know, trying to keep them in line is like herding cats, that's the terminology we use here and if we don't hold people accountable for things you know, they just don't get done. And so it's kind of the best way that we've come up with to have people keep the store clean, because that's, that's our image right there. And if we don't have the store looking good, and we don't have stuff organized well, we're going to have a real hard time selling"

You'll want to hear Donna Chope, the "passport queen," explain why they're not bashful about getting $60 for some passport photos!

You'll want to see Shewmaker's ad to "get out of your chains" - it can't be described!

So when you visit the DIMAcast site you'll want to download the PDF file that puts the pictures to the words!

Idea #1 - You might not need a buying group if . . . FEEDBACK

David C. Sanders - Island Digital Photo - Hilton Head Island, SC. USA - www.islanddigitalphoto.net

We are relatively new to photo imaging, and without the help of the ideas exchanged in the IPI forum - and the ideas from the McCurry Marketing Idea Exchange - I am sure we would have closed the shop. Instead, for YTD we are up 20% (no price increase) mostly through implementing ideas we learned from members of IPI.

It's a great group - and everyone shares. No one feels like they compete since we are all independent retail photo finishing in our own markets. Coming from the corporate world, I have never seen anything like it.

editor's note: Dave emailed that to me and I couldn't help noticing how effective his text signature was as an advertising message:

We have just installed the award winning HP Photosmart 200 system. This means two new kiosks as well as the ability to print calendars, photobooks, posters, and cards from these two kiosks - in our one hour environment. Come in today and you will be absolutely delighted with these new capabilities

Idea 2 - Christmas is only five months away - get ready!

Rodger Champion - American Shutterbug, Inc - Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA - www.americanshutterbug.com

I saw Bruce Hallstrom's of Bison Photos idea about reordering Christmas cards in Issue 231, and I had an idea to expand that.

We use AGFA Dlab printers, and we have software to create/design our own index prints. I thought that taking Bruce's Idea one step further and created an Index print that essentially has the same wording on it, plus since we use an INDEX print it has the customer's actual Card printed in the corner with the file name we designated for that card.

So when the customer calls back all the info is on the index print. We created it to be generic so we could use it with birth announcements and invitations all year long. And we designed one for each card size, 4x8 and 5x7.

Thanks for the idea Bruce.

Calendar of coming events

July 16, 2008 - July 17, 2008 - PMA Latin America Imaging Conferences Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Renaissance Jaragua Hotel & Casino

July 19 -21, 2008 - PRO 50th Annual Convention and Trade Show in Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA

August 10-14 - IPI Convention, Las Vegas, NV, USA

August 12, 2008 - August 13, 2008 - PMA Latin America Imaging Conference Lima, Peru Sheraton Lima Hotel & Convention Center

August 18, 2008 - Annual Golf Outing of the NY/NJ Metro Division of PMA. Cherry Valley Club, Garden City NY. Contact Joel Paymer for details 212-753-5128

September 11, 2008 - September 13, 2008 - PMA Canada Exposition 2008 Palais des Congres de Montreal Montreal, Quebec Canada

September 13-14, 2008 PMA Northern California Division Annual Meeting and Tabletop Show "Veni, Vidi, Visa" (I Came, I Saw, I Shopped!) Cache Creek Casino Resort, Brooks, CA

September 23-29, 2008 - Photokina Koln (Cologne) Germany

October 3-4, 2008 PMA North Central Division Annual Meeting Riverwood Inn, Otsego, MN

October 10-11, 2008 PMA Pacific Northwest Division Annual Meeting Seattle, WA

March 1 - March 4, 2009 - DIMA 2009 Las Vegas, NV, USA

March 3 - March 5, 2009 - PMA 2009 Las Vegas, NV, USA

You requested us to send you this newsletter.

Please send us your marketing idea as well as comments on those ideas posted by hitting your reply button or emailing to editor@mccurryassoc.com. You may offer free subscriptions to your colleagues by sending them this link: http://photoimagenews.com/mccurry.htm

Please Enjoy, Consider and Profit from these ideas. All the Best, Bill

William J. McCurry, Chairman

McCurry Associates

email: editor@mccurryassoc.com

web: http://www.mccurryassoc.com

Issue 259 - July 10, 2008