I love SlideShare.net.
If I’m not careful, I could lose days on there learning and not doing.
Though, this presentation is worth every moment of your time. It was created by Marty Neumuier of Liquid Agency, formerly Neutron. Liquid has worked with some impressive brands such as Meebo, Adidas and Microsoft.
If J. Dawg’s had begun by just offering great hot dogs, then they probably would have down alright. But they’ve done amazingly well because of the brand story that customers love, want to share and can easily share because it’s simple.
Setup inside of a small shack only large enough for a grill, toppings, a refrigerator and two employees across the street from the university campus, J. Dawg’s sells all beef and polish hot dogs. They also offer a sweet tasting secret sauce that I buy from them by the pint. There is almost no parking since the university controls all of the parking lots in the area. You usually have to park elsewhere and walk there.
So why was this little start-up featured as one of the best in the area?
Two stories.
Story One. I was walking around a mall recently when I decided to check-in on Foursquare. To my glee, American Eagle was having a Foursquare special. For checking in, I qualified for 15% off my entire purchase.
Walking along an outdoor street mall in Park City, I noticed that only two stores had their doors open, despite the beautiful weather. The store in the picture above was one of only three stores I entered simply because it was easier.
Bare with me for a moment while I indulge my love of economics.
So I received a marketing email from my web hosting service that started me chuckling. The exclusive offer was for 50% off the normal price of hosting. However, the promotion was only good for new accounts.
To my web host’s credit, I have just about unlimited everything. So rarely would someone need a second or third account. Meaning, I would have to create a second, completely unnecessary account to qualify for the promotion.
So why the odd offer?