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“Community Spotlight” Cape & Islands Police K-9 Relief Fund

Bay State Merchant Services will always emphasize the importance of community and the role that small businesses play to keep it thriving. However, there are those who live, and sometimes sacrifice everything, to protect our communities. And it's those organizations - made up of brave men, women, and animals - who we just can't thank enough for all that they do. Started in 2001 by Joe Ambrosini, retired K-9 handler and former Deputy Superintendent for Public Safety, Barnstable County Sheriff's Office, the Cape & Islands Police K-9 Relief Fund helps ease the burden of veterinary costs associated with caring for retired K-9 officers. It is supported by donations from compassionate individuals, civic-minded local businesses, and generous national sponsors as well as through merchandise sales and fundraising events. In addition, the Cape & Islands Police K-9 Relief Fund receives commissions from purchases made through retailers advertising on our website. Please click on their links from our site at www.capecodpolicek9.org to make those commissions count! Video (2014): K9 Torres…

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How I Increased Restaurant Sales by Double in 30 Days – Kamron Karington

How I Increased Restaurant Sales by Double in 30 Days – Kamron Karington

6/23/20 - Marketing: "As I sat, defeated and hopeless in my pizzeria early one morning... an "aha" moment changed everything. The fog was gone... I knew EXACTLY what was needed to turn this failing nightmare into a pulsating business." ~ Kamron Karington The marketing principles used by Kamron to reinvent and resurrect his pizza restaurant are applicable for businesses of all types and sizes. On a macro level, it almost always comes down to a mindset. Episode #1:- 30 days into owning a pizzeria, was this the biggest mistake of my life? - How a night sleeping on top of the walk-in cooler led to the “aha” moment. - The single, unexpected question that changed my life. - The pitch that became the blueprint for every ad I ever put out. - Sales doubled in 30 days and rampaged upward from $12,000 to $149,000 a month. - Why fear crystalizes your thinking and eliminates weak alternatives. To paraphrase Tony Robbins (and perhaps many others)... The brain will…

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Restaurants: Make Bank With Adaptive Marketing

Restaurants: Make Bank With Adaptive Marketing

6/18/20 - Restaurant Marketing: Another fresh lesson straight from the oven of Kamron Karington with RepeatReturns.com. Author of "Gun To The Head Marketing", KK lays out how important Adaptive Marketing is right now for restaurants as we move out of this shut-down... and beyond. This - rather scientific - approach has made big companies a lot of money, because they cater a huge portion of their marketing directly to us as individuals. They follow the ebb-and-flow of our spending habits over time. However, restaurants can do this too, and typically with the info you're already collecting with your POS system. A general problem with coupon offers is the one-size-fits-all model, which gives customers a chance to spend less. However, a customized points or rewards program will drive more spending from your customers. In fact, Kamron tells the story of one restaurant that went into the COVID shut-down strong, was already using adaptive marketing, and came out three months later much stronger. "Use adaptive marketing to incentivize your…

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Kevin O’Leary – Credit Card Processing Options… and COVID-19

Kevin O’Leary – Credit Card Processing Options… and COVID-19

6/13/20: Business owners must watch. This is a great example of how Bay State Merchant Services can help, especially now. The merchant in this interview - Kristan Sayers, owner of Kbella hair studio in Brighton, Michigan - says that she will only be able to do 30% of her typical business due to COVID-19 and is concerned about consumers feeling unsure about entering her business. In addition to her significant loss of revenue, now she has the added expense of PPE, including face-masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer. Kristan is also concerned about her high credit card processing fees, and asks the panel for recommendations. Kevin O'Leary's only answer to these issues is to "shop around" and look for better card rates. THIS IS NOT A GOOD SOLUTION! Kristan mentions that her payment processing fees are between $10,000 and $15,000 annually, and that she's looking to eliminate these fees. ...Thanks to Congress, she can do this. All businesses can do this. Bay State Merchant Services's Cash Discount Program…

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Customers For Life – Jay Abraham

Customers For Life – Jay Abraham

6/12/20: Marketing legend Jay Abraham challenges you to become the only viable solution for your clients and to lead them to success. In this video Jay shares his strategy of preeminence and asks you to think about points like: * Make your business be the only alternative* Lead your customers - people don't trust the system* You're not being told the whole truth. Here's the truth as I see it* Most people don't know what focus is until they've made it No matter the type of business that you own, you have customers - or even better, you have "clients". Jay illustrates some of the best ways in which to treat your clients - for businesses of any size and type. "We all want to be led, we’re silently begging to be led. However, we want to be led by somebody who we feel absolutely has our best interest, not theirs, at heart." ~ Jay Abraham

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Explode Your Landscaping Business! – Small Business Education and Tips

Explode Your Landscaping Business! – Small Business Education and Tips

6/11/20: Landscaping marketing guru, Keith Kalfas with Kalfas Landscaping, and creator of "The Landscaping Employee Trap" blog gives us some great tips for the landscaping/lawn-care business owners out there. For some, this may be one of those "Why didn't I think of that?!" moments, and that's okay. This Door-to-Door approach is brilliant, because the neighbors of your customers already know you're there - they can hear your machines! The ice is already broken! “I have a service to provide for them that they need, because I know that they’re not gonna want to get up on a ladder and trim their shrubs or trim their trees, and I’m an expert at that”. ~ Keith Kalfas

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Mike Rowe: Don’t Pursue Your Passion. Chase Opportunity.

Mike Rowe: Don’t Pursue Your Passion. Chase Opportunity.

6/10/20Last week we highlighted a motivational piece about Elon Musk and his overwhelming drive and passion. Shifting gears somewhat, let's highlight another, and perhaps a bit more reachable path to success and fulfillment. For instance, seizing an opportunity that fulfills a need - there's happiness in that.  In this interview with Mike Rowe and Entrepreneur.com, The 'Dirty Jobs' star shares his thoughts on passion and how it sometimes gets in the way of success. The above video is from Entrepreneur.com. Related article written by Jason Fell.

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“Drive Overrides Fear” ~ Elon Musk

You don't have to be the founder of BOTH Tesla and Spacex to experience the challenges, fear, doubt, glory, and wonder of pursuing a dream. These dreams are the common thread that bind together those of us who can't seem to fight the urge to start and run our own business - to work for ourselves. From a small family-owned restaurant to a large car company, and everything in between, success requires nothing less than razor-sharp focus and what often feels like more hours than physically possible, yet entrepreneurs are succeeding at this every day. In fact, most feel they have no choice. Two of Elon Musk's heroes, Astronauts Gene Cernan and Neil Armstrong - both of whom serve as a huge source of inspiration for Musk - testified to Congress against Musk's idea of developing a commercial space-flight program. This rejection, along with the other countless naysayers, the immense cost involved, and three consecutive failed launch-tests should have been enough for anyone to rethink their plans…

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