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Last night my roommate showed me this card he had gotten on his car after leaving it at bar this past weekend. On the back it looks like a parking ticket that the city would give you, at least in Fargo. Then on the reverse side it you find out that it is actually a coupon for 15% your next visit including your guests. This is the first time I have seen a bar offer this type of service. The card proudly says you are receiving this because you were responsible enough not to drink and drive.

Big D’s is a bar and grill that gets most of its traffic and crowd from the local collages and office parks. They constantly play ads on the radio for their food and drink specials. It is no surprise that they will have a parking lot full of cars and some of those cars remain over-night. I think offering a discount on cars left over is a great way of bring return customers.

 First off, let’s rehash what probably happened. Some people made the choice to go out and enjoy themselves a little too much (visit #1). Then they either carpooled to the next bar or got a cab home for the evening. The next day they have to return to collect their belongings, since they weren’t in jail for drunk driving (visit #2). Bam, 15% discount coupon stuck in the window of their car. Can’t let 15% go, can we now? So they return to use their discount (visit #3). Perhaps, they are a slow learner or maybe a lush and the process repeats itself again. Now, I am psychologist but I do know that if you start visiting a place more than a couple of times it will produce a habit. Not all of the people who got this coupon will visit the bar every night of the week, but even if it becomes a once a week spot that bar is gaining. They are using the allure of a discount and yet another visit to their business in order to get your patronage. If they get a 5-10% conversion rate out of those cards and discounts they are out virtually nothing in the long term.
How are you getting people back your website or blog? Are you offering something that surprises people or something they would enjoy? What advantage does your patronage have over the average customer?

State Convention

What a week and weekend it has been here in Fargo, ND. Leading up to this weekend I have been preparing and helping to organize with the state convention for the Republican Party. This is my first election cycle involvement apart from marking a ballot with a check. The primary purpose of my involvement wasn’t due to my love of the Republican Party but rather to promote and represent the Ron Paul campaign. I am happy to report that Ron Paul will be receiving 11 of the 23 delegates up for grabs at the National Convention this September in St. Paul, MN.

End of the Month

With the end of the month being tomorrow I will be posting the final stats and accomplishments for March on April Fools Day :). I will say that I have accomplished way more than I ever though possible for my first month of blogging.

A great April Fools Day prank

Here is an awesome prank and maybe a last minute idea any of you who don’t have a prank already lined up.

Hey everyone, I have been really busy with North Dakota State Party political elections and decided to post a video from our backpacking trip this last Monday. The video is a little cheesy but my first go at it, more to come. For those of you who do not know Lindsay and I went to Theodore Roosevelt National Forest over Easter weekend for a backpacking trip with our dog Ace.

“It’s who and what you know that get you where you want to go.” -Josh Whitford

Most people who are online and trying to make a living from it know you can’t just throw a switch and start making money, at least not for most of us. Many of the top bloggers started blogging because they loved their subject and would blog about it even if nobody listened. These blogger also didn’t get to where they are now by sitting on their hands. 80% of my time online doesn’t involve writing blog posts but rather marketing this blog and ThatMutt.com. Networking is king of the Internet.

Before you call your workweek quits and head home for the weekend, promote your blog one more time in a way you haven’t tried before. I am going to give you a couple examples and if in one week you don’t see an improvement, I will give you the shirt off my back.

1. Get one new backlink to your blog each day for a week, how hard can this be with BloggingZoom, Hubpages, Entrecard, Guest posts and so on?

2. Start an email or message conversation with someone you don’t know in your niche. I tend to pick up conversations and correspondence with someone new every week. All of these relationships over time turn into friendships. Friends help friends, and you find that where you are weak they are strong and much gets accomplished for free.

3. Use networking tools to your advantage. I don’t talk about StumbleUpon and Digg all the time because they are cool to look at. They are networking tools that can generate a lot of traffic and exposure for my blog. Find 5 new friends and add them to your friends list on whatever social networking medium you use. Having 100 friends on Digg and sending a shout to each one when you have a new article is bound to get you your lions share of traffic.

4. Activity seek out guest posts. I try to have at least one guest post per week. This introduces yourself and shows your qualities to another market. Doing a guest post is probably the easiest way to gain RSS subscribers and a backlink to your blog. As a bonus, if you swap guest posts, it changes up your routine a bit so you don’t get bored.

5. Bookmark or subscribe to as many blogs as you can. Eventually you won’t read every post that comes your way, but you will at least know what is going on with each particular blog. When you come across a post you have an interest in, you won’t feel intimidated to post a comment or email the author your thoughts.

6. Along with visiting blogs frequently, comment frequently. Try commenting on every post for a month for those same blogs you subscribed to. It will not take long before the author is frequenting your blog and posting on your site. When mutual posting is occurring, the foundation has already been laid to pursue a closer relationship with another blogger.

7. Join a forum. Forums are everywhere. The only issue you have is joining the right forum for your topic. Scout out a couple different forums and introduce yourself. Make sure to include an awesome signature with your website details. When you find a forum you like, make sure to make yourself a part of the community. You will gain traffic, friends, feedback and much more in a short amount of time.

These are only a few tips to get you started in supercharging your network. Take action and make a difference for your blog and yourself today. If you have any other networking successes you would like to share, leave a comment.

I have added Scrachback Topspots to my blog to test. The premise behind it is to receive tips from my readers and in turn they get a link on my widget. Mind you, tippers are not paying for the link, they are tipping my blogging genius and in return their link is shown to the world. It is like donating to a charitable cause, or rather, a blogging scholarship. Not many anonymous people donate to charities, because most people want to be recognized. If you would like to tip me $1, your honorable mention will be shown on the Scratchback widget. Your link will remain on the top until another person tips my earth-shattering articles. When the second person tips, he or she will be on top and the previous top person will be bumped down, and so on. After 5 tips have been received, the last person will be bumped off.

I considered having it set for a fixed length of time like one week. I decided against it, thinking that some people would get more for their money letting if they remain until being bumped off the list. Right now all spots are open, and the first 5 people to sign up will receive 100 Entrecard credits. So, have fun and enjoy your recognition. Oh tipper of the blogosphere, this link is for you.