A Marketing Challenge For Y'All

Just thought I'd give a brief update. Not that much has happened, but I did talk with Tom earlier this evening.

He does plan to do some sort of Christmas-themed window display. He likes the little tree that looks like an eye chart, which Margaret emailed to me (http://www.luckenbooth.com/images/windowtest.gif). But, it's a small GIF file, and he wants me to enlarge it -- presumably 8 1/2" x 11", but maybe bigger -- so he can just tape it to the window. I just tried resizing it in PSP6 (which I don't have much experience with), and it got all blurry 'cuz the resolution isn't fine enough. Anyone have any suggestions? Margaret?

He wasn't real thrilled with the barter idea, but I think I need time to sit and explain the possibilities to him better.

He liked the idea of the "house-call" to travelers at local hotels/motels, as long as they are pretty close. I think he is even open to making "office-calls" to busy execs, though not right away. He did make the point that he is rather limited as to what he can do, both physically and legally, away from the store.

He thought of a couple more other merchants whose lists he may be able to rent or be endorsed to. I'll try to get him to follow up on that as soon as he gets back from Ohio.

Tom actually brought up the possibility of getting a small loan (for purchase of the computer/software/printer) before I did. He had some objection to the credit line (I can't remember what), even though a local bank gives special rates to members of the Chamber of Commerce.

Regarding the publicity opportunities, I started talking about the "fashion makeover" thing on Oprah, but I think we got sidetracked. (Tom loves to talk and we get off on tangents and sometimes forget to go back to something. Know what that's like?) I did suggest that he may want to focus on an upscale, fashion-conscious, niche market. On the other end, I mentioned the "Christmas gift to the community" idea, offering products/services to the underprivileged and low-income families, etc. He has serious reservations about getting involved in welfare situations -- "it's dangerous", he said. I didn't press him, 'cuz he was late for dinner and we had more to discuss.

However, he does have a soft spot for kids, and he quoted some statistic about how many kids (65%?) in the average classroom can't see the blackboard. Because of this, he has often thought of doing some sort of program to make sure that every (local) kid got proper eyecare/wear. Sounds like a pretty big project, and I'm not sure he could finance it alone even in an average year. Hmm, maybe we could head up a special fund-drive... If we got enough donations, he might only need to donate his time. Tom & his wife already donate a lot of time/money/effort for their kids' school.

That reminds me... Tom said that it is illegal in NJ to give away a free exam. I don't remember if he specifically said "eye" exams, or if it was medical exams of any sort. Theoretically, though, it would be legal to only charge a buck, or a penny.

Oh, and I was quite mistaken about the arrangement between Tom and Ramy. Tom does indeed control the price of eye exams. (Ramy's concern, of course, was that giving a lot of discounts on exams would "cheapen" people's perception of his services.) In fact, Ramy gets paid $X/day, regardless of how much/little business comes in. Actually, if it goes over a certain volume, he gets a bit extra. But, the bottom line is that Tom controls all the pricing. On the other hand, he's gotta pay the doc, even if the doc has no opportunity to bring any money in.

That's it, for now. Thanks again, everyone.

Chris