Enterprenuer
Lonny Kocina, a visionary and passionate marketer, is Lonny Kocina. He is also an expert in bringing ideas to life.
Lonny established Media Relations Agency in 1987.
The nationally trademarked Media Relations Agency’s Pay Per Interview Publicity(r), which allows clients to buy publicity by the story, has become a well-known business model in the industry. Several hundred clients have used it.
It’s a familiar concept. He explains that if you buy a pizza, you get pizza.
If you purchase a car, you get car coverage.
Clients come to us because it is no longer worth paying hourly retainers for little return.
Lonny advises entrepreneurs that building a brand is no longer enough.
The meaning of the word brand has been diluted by people using it to mean almost meaningless product synonyms.
You can call your product your brand if it is not well-known.
It would be foolish to make an unknown product famous.
Lonny explains that this is our goal: “To make our clients’ products popular.”
Lonny knows how valuable this advice is for entrepreneurs, marketers, and CEOs, even though he’s used to it.
He wrote “The CEO’s Guide to Marketing,” as well as an online course that focuses on his Strategically Aimed Marketing process (SAM6(r).
“I’m tipping my hat and giving away secrets that I would rather keep.
However, I am older, and this is to save people the frustrations I have experienced in my career.”
What is the story of Media Relations Agency?
I kept a list of things that frustrated me when searching for a business idea.
I was frustrated that PR firms charge per hour and do not guarantee coverage.
I believed that companies would pay more if I set for media coverage. Businesses loved the idea.
We have published tens of thousands of news stories about clients’ products over the past thirty years, all based upon a simple pricing twist.
PR firms that were used to being paid per hour, regardless of whether they produced results or not, hated us.
How do you stay productive?
My workday usually starts around 7:15 or 7. My thinking is most evident in the morning.
As a 65-year-old, I work less than I did in my 50s. Great managers run my agency.
You will get smarter the older you become. I have found that I can achieve the same results with less effort.
How do you bring ideas to life?
Your mind is where ideas start. They must be brought into reality, or they will remain a dream.
They are born by talking about them and writing about them to others.
You must then nurture them long-term, just like an adolescent.
Ideas are tiny little things at first.
Ideas grow up and become independent of you.
What’s your favorite trend?
Trends are not something I like, and many are going in the wrong direction.
I wouldn’t say I enjoy working at home. I don’t like socialism.
The trend towards inflation is not something I like.
The trend towards big government is not something I like.
I wouldn’t say I like the trend towards less personal communication.
People who aren’t conforming to trends have many opportunities.
You can make money by going right when the herd is moving left.
What habits make you productive?
I am a walker and think about ways our agency can be relevant.
Walking and thinking can take me up to an hour.
It’s almost like I do my homework before going to class.
What’s your advice for the Noob?
Join a bible study group. There’s something more significant than your business, and it’s essential to think about how your business fits into that.
What is one thing we can all agree on?
Music is a waste of my time. Your brain can’t shut off.
Your brain must think while you are awake.
It should not be connected to anything that would essentially park it in neutral.
What do you recommend as an entrepreneur?
We are the ones who make our products famous through media attention.
No matter the size of the audience, I will do any media interview.
As a consultant, I used the late Minnesota Governor Wendal.
He said that he always tried to finish first in small-town parades.
He could hop on another float, which gave him some time.
He claimed that people laughed and clapped when they saw him again. Fame is key to product success.
It is worth doing whatever you can to make your product famous.
What’s your rich strategy?
Before we offer our services, we get our money upfront.
This means that we don’t have any collection issues or bad debt.
This means that clients don’t pay the extra cost of bad debt.
Prospects who are having trouble paying their bills often go to other agencies.
If you are willing to work hard, you can get good credit and write off bad debt.
How do you overcome Failure?
You will fail many times if you’re an entrepreneur.
These failures can be overcome by simply saying “so what” then moving on.
This is similar to asking a professional baseball player about a time when they missed the ball and then asking them how they overcame it.
Can you share a business idea?
Pan of Bars is a great idea. Focus on making the most delicious bars.
I know what you mean – lemon bars, crispy rice bars, and brownies.
This may be possible, but I haven’t seen it.
You could bet that I would be a regular customer if it did exist.
What’s your recent best buy?
I am taking my grandkids along to the county fair. Low cost and high return
What are your favorite Softwares or Apps?
This question is not relevant to me as I am 65 years old.
However, I reserved website names such as publicity.com back once any name was available.
Many of my clients followed my advice. The train had left the station long ago.
Which book would you recommend?
Mine, of course. The CEO’s Guide to Market” is an Amazon bestseller that has won numerous awards.
It is, in my opinion, the best marketing book. This book is not a collection of 1001 ideas.
My book is a guidebook. Sometimes, our agency manages over 100 campaigns simultaneously.
My book outlines our method for maintaining marketing on track.
What’s your favorite quote?
You can either grow or die in business.
Key Learnings:TL;DR by Lonny Kocina Key Learnings:
- To grow ideas into strong ideas, they must be nurtured. These ideas can be thought about, shared with others and written down.
- Fame is key to product success. It is worth doing whatever you can to make your product famous.
- You’ll fail too many times as an entrepreneur. Accepting this fact makes it easier. It is possible to overcome failure by simply saying “so what,” and then moving on.
