Hello there – check out this photo from the bar we used on holiday!!

Just back from 2 glorious weeks in Turkey. Took the family, my wife  and both our teenage children. We’d reckoned it might be a bit of a watershed as my daughter is waiting for her results to hopefully go off to university in September, and therefore it might be our last ‘family’ holiday together

What’s My Turkish Holiday Got To Do With Internet Marketing?

But I tell you, she just kept on talking about coming away next year, can we do this, go here, there etc so maybe it won’t be our last. Anyway what’s this got to do with internet marketing I hear you ask? After all that’s what my blog is about.

Well actually several things, bear with me I’m just setting the scene – see the photos and you’ll get my drift of what a great holiday destination Turkey can be. Really friendly people, lovely weather, realistically priced (no Euro Zone nonsense to deal with!!) and they really look after you.

Any of these things (apart from the weather) sound familiar in relation to running an online business – I sincerely hope so.

Anyway it got me thinking:

Just out from our hotel there were a choice of probably 60 bars, cafés and restaurants from which to choose – all touting for your business, especially when you first arrive because they know “capture you early in your holiday – the more you’ll come back & spend”

Sounds a bit like” building your list” doesn’t it?

Free giveaways – The Turks often offer a free Apple tea (very refreshing in 40 degree heat I can tell you. But then you get some who go the extra mile. One guy whose restaurant was just off the beach suddenly turned up on the sand one morning asking us would we like a coffee, or apple tea on the house?

Suddenly one of his waiters is there with a trayful of drinks. Guess where we went for lunch when you need to escape the noon day sun!!

Just like us giving a free report, audio file to get people’s to join our list – yes?

 Clever or what?

And if that wasn’t enough he’d most days just send a waiter down with our mid morning free drinks but, and here’s the clincher about half an hour before we normally left the beach for lunch.

He knew we’d have to take the empty cups back to him before going for lunch. What’s the chances of us returning the empty cups and then walking off to another bar for lunch – no chance! And he knew that – that’s clever marketing in my book.

Now Here’s The Parallels With Internet marketing

Now this guy runs a restaurant, not sure if he owns it. He works a 14 hour day in 40 + degree heat, always has a smile on his face – my children nicknames him  Happy Man and not only serves but his main function is front of house pulling tourists like us into his place and then looking after them and I might add very well!

That’s a good businessman I reckon, but what a lot of hard work because bearing in mind he’s going through all of that ‘marketing’ activity just to get a return for probably at best part of a 2 week period because lets face it many tourists do not return to the same destination time & time again (we have but that’s another story)

So my friends the morals of this story for all of us developing our businesses online is this:

Here’s the Morals

Moral 1 – Spend your time building your list because if you do it right you’ll reap the benefits for a hell of a lot longer than  Happy Man for 2 weeks in the summer. Think of it like a retirement plan.

Moral 2 – Over deliver all the time – it pays dividends

Moral 3 – Thank your lucky stars you don’t have to work 14 hours a day in 40 degree heat to make it happen

Moral 4 – Smile – even if people can’t see you smiling it pays off, your entire mood and demeanour is better and comes across in the way you deal with people in your everyday business life. My Old Nan used to say “smile and the world smiles with you – Cry and you cry alone” – believe me its true

I hope you’ve enjoyed my little illustration from our Turkey trip

To your success

Tony

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