Next week on ResultsRevTV we will have Jack Criss join us to share some of the knowledge he has gained in his 23 years of experience in the media and publishing industries.

Jack is the owner and publisher of Greater Jackson Business Magazine and has founded and published several other Mississippi based magazines.  He has spent the last 18 years in the field of business newspaper publishing as an editorial and advertising executive.  He is also the author of “Ready, Aim, Right!”, a collection of political and philosophical essays and editorials, published in 2004.

In addition to his work in the publishing world, Jack has hosted and produced business talk radio shows in the Jackson area for several years.  He is also a popular public speaker in the Jackson area, having addressed classes at the University of Mississippi, Millsaps College, Belhaven College, the Jackson, MS Young Urban Professionals organization and many other civic groups.  Jack has also spent a great deal of time with the Mississippi Chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team In Training.  He is a Board Member, Alum and Mentor and has run one marathon and two half marathons with the group.

As an active member of the community and with years of experience and success in the publishing industry Jack has much to say about business networking and surviving the ups and downs of owning a small business!  You will not want to miss this opportunity to hear about his experiences and much more!

Tomorrow, we’ll learn from the e-mail marketing master of our local market – Jeff Good. As I’m prepping for our visit tomorrow, I am reminded that all great marketing campaigns start with DOING SOMETHING. I can promise you that 11 years ago when I started HALO, I had NO IDEA that I would get to this place where we are creating a completely FREE marketing and shop local resource for small, independently owned businesses.

Often, when we START something, we have NO idea where it will lead. We can’t fathom the end results – but we can envision something greater than where we are today. I can’t say for certain, but I bet Jeff Good could never have imagined the impact that collecting e-mail addresses would ultimately have on his business as it is today. It’s HUGE for his three amazing restaurants and catering company. Jeff can move the needle by sending an e-mail.

But what if he’d waited to collect e-mails until he had a purpose for them? You can probably imagine a purpose for a great e-mail list – but what if you only have 50? Or less?

DO SOMETHING. Everything great started somewhere. Nothing good ever happened from waiting.

Start today. Collect e-mail addresses from every customer, prospect, vendor, and friend that you have. Have your employees do the same. Find creative ways to collect the e-mails. The time is now. Waiting until you have an important message to send is TOO LATE.

If you’re already collecting e-mail addresses, find ways to do it more efficiently and more consistently. Like anything else, there is always room for improvement, and it is a rare case where every single possible e-mail address is collected.

E-mail is still a very powerful and effective marketing tool for small, locally owned businesses. Do not let even a single opportunity to communicate so affordably and directly pass you by. Make e-mail address collection a bold, priority initiative for your business starting today. It’s the first step in getting ready to do REALLY big things (and getting really big results for your marketing).

Small business owners can learn about the key elements of a successful e-mail marketing campaign from local restaurateur Jeff Good at a free event next Tuesday, March 9, 2010.

Good will be the featured small business owner on ResultsRevTV; the show will be webcast before a live audience from the LemuriaBooks.com building in Jackson, Miss. The event is free and open to the public thanks to a sponsorship from Beck Photographic. Local small business owners are encouraged to attend.

As co-owner of three popular restaurants and a catering company in Jackson, Miss., Jeff Good uses e-mail marketing tools on a weekly basis to promote events, educate customers, and motivate support for community causes. At this informative event, Good will reveal how he personally manages his extensive e-mail marketing efforts, why e-mail is a pillar of his marketing program, and what tools he uses to help him in his e-mailing efforts.

This event is the second in a series of weekly webcasts of ResultsRevTV and part of the Results Revolution (www.resultsrevolution.com). ResultsRevTV is the show where small business owners learn how to grow their businesses through smarter marketing. Each week, attendees will learn from the experience of a successful small business owner. The event will include live question and answer time as well as door prizes and a special gift for local attendees.

In the Jackson, MS area, bring your lunch and join us live at Noon in the LemuriaBooks.com Building (adjacent to Banner Hall on I-55 North between Northside & Meadowbrook). Wherever you are, you may join us live on the web at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/resultsrev.

The Results Revolution is a nationwide initiative seeking to create strong economies through locally owned and operated small businesses. The Results Revolution encourages consumers to shop locally, equips small businesses to do effective marketing, and facilitates networking among the business community. The Results Revolution was founded as a free resource for small business owners by Jackson area marketing consultants, Marianna and Andy Chapman.

So, you’ve gotten in touch with your inner producer by shooting some video footage of your business, downtown district, restaurant or hotel experience… Now what?

Hopefully, you’re using an easy-to-use camera that makes digital editing quick and easy. (We use the Flip HD.) There are lots of fancy editing, add-ons and other things you can do to make your video more and more professional… However, that is definitely NOT required to bring a positive impact to your brand. In fact, there’s a fair amount of evidence that shows that the more amateurish the video, the more authentic and interesting it is to customers.

Once your video is “produced” – you’ll want to get it out there on the web, so folks can watch it. More importantly, like other content suitable for the web, if you post your video in only one place, you’ll be leaving potential buzz (and resulting dollars) on the table. You’ll notice that these five places build upon each other, and can be accomplished quickly for each video you desire to post. Leverage your content in multiple places for maximum impact.

Here are my top five quick recommendations for placing video content through your new media marketing channels:

1. YouTube. Google owns YouTube, and they love their own content. When you post on YouTube, you’re posting right into the Google universe.

2. Facebook Page. Your business should have a Facebook Page (not a personal profile). When you post video to YouTube, they give you a link to that video. Post that LINK on your Facebook Page along with any comments that you wish to add. I also recommend that once posted on your Page that you go back to your personal profile and give your personal friends the tip that you’ve just updated your Page with a video to start the ball rolling with more intensity.

3. Twitter. Tweet out the topic and put a bit.ly link to your video in the tweet. Here’s what it might look like: “Great video inspiring viewers to Buy Main Street http://bit.ly/8k2Al” Or “We blush at the feedback http://bit.ly/1xYTHR (video)”. Either way, make sure the tweet let’s folks know it’s going to a video and describe what they will learn when they watch.

4. Your Web Site or Blog. Embed the video on your web site and/or blog. YouTube gives you a snippet of code that will allow you to embed the video right onto your web site. Do this in a video section, as a supplement to any individual section or as an aptly worded, keyword rich blog post. There are many creative ways to USE video on a web site…the most important part is to USE the video on your web site period.

5. E-Mail Newsletter. Link to the video from your e-mail newsletter. Let your e-mail newsletter subscribers know that they can watch and learn more. List titles, descriptions that are linked to the video on your web site.

What about you? What are your favorite places to place video content?

Photo Credit: wwworks