I was visiting a jewelry store in a sleepy northern Michigan town. The store used to be known for having a $32,000 diamond ring. Now those of you in a big city might think no big deal, but to this community, it would take the entire population pitching in $6 each to buy that ring.

People used to flock to the store to try it on.

After about ten years on display someone finally bought the ring a few years ago.

You would think that was a good thing. The store owner thought so at the time. But on the day I visited, she was lamenting how her business was down. Traffic wasn’t what it used to be. I asked her when it started. You all can probably guess – right after she sold the ring.

No ring, no draw.

Sometimes you have to take a little bit of your ad budget and put it toward buying something completely outrageous that you don’t expect to sell (but people will want to see.)

We do that all the time. Nothing better than hearing a customer say to someone shopping with her, “Oh you have to come over and see this!” You know she and her friend are going to be talking about it to others, too.

Some might look at a $32,000 diamond ring and say, “That’s pretty expensive advertising.” Unless you consider she got ten years of advertising from it, and then had someone refund the money back to her by buying it.

When you are looking to generate Word-of-Mouth advertising, you gotta give them something to talk about. A 32,000 piece puzzle that is almost eighteen feet long and over six feet wide and comes with its own hand cart is gonna make people talk.

-Phil Wrzesinski
www.PhilsForum.com

PS I suggested she needed to buy another $32,000 ring or bigger. That was an investment in advertising that paid off big the first time and will pay off big again. There are a few tried and true ways to Generate Word of Mouth (click that hyperlink to download my FREE eBook on the topic). Over-the-top design including over-the-top products is one of those ways.

PPS I guess 32,000 is my lucky number today.