Promotional Tools for Your Tool Box Part Enam

Having spent the past five weeks in Bali helping Robyn's dad recover from his stroke, we have been fortunate to be exposed to the Balinese culture. The food is great; the sites are beautiful; and the experiences are amazing.

One thing I (David) have missed is the American broadcasts of the Summer Olympic Games. We had to watch the ESPN Hong Kong channel's coverage, and it was as dry as toast. I assumed that all Olympic broadcasts began with the famous Olympic fanfare music that NBC begins and ends every telecast with, but they don't.

All that to remind you that music is one of my passions. It is a big part of many people's lives, I'm told, and that brings us to our enam (sixth) and final post on promotional tools for your tool box, and our final post from Bali. We didn't include this in our list of 63 promotional tools for entrepreneurs and small business owners because it may be more costly than many small businesses can afford.

Our tip for entrepreneurs and small business owners today is: hire an ad agency and create a memorable jingle for your company. I mentioned music before in a previous blog asking our nephew Devon (and you) to come up with a zinger for our business dream, the Arkansas Diamond Mine Adventure. (I consider zingers to be a very short jingle such as: "We are Farmers, bum be dum bum bum bum bum," and the five-notes at the end of Intel commercials.)

I have no idea how much it costs to create a good jingle, but it is worth every penny when you come up with a catchy, memorable one. Mostly, large companies use jingles, but small businesses certainly can, too. When I lived in Atlanta I liked a local nursery's jingle about playing in the dirt again. That was 16 years ago. And I previously wrote that I remember the TV commercials from the Arkansas-Texas football game in 1971. That's 41 years ago. Music stays with you. That's why teachers use music to help children remember things.

Here are 14 (oops, I caught that after I published this) of our favorite jingles. Many of these bring back good memories, much like the Holiday Inn sign we previously discussed.

Number 14: "Wouldn't you like to be a pepper too?" for Dr. Pepper

Number 13: "Have it your way" for Burger King

Number 12: "Two scoops in a package of Kellogg's Raisin Bran"

Number 11: "Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't" for Almond Joy and Mounds bars

Number 10: "Break me off a piece of that Kit Kat bar"

Number 9: "We're American Airlines, doing what we do best"

Number 8: "I am stuck on Band-Aids 'cause Band-Aids stuck on me"

Number 7: "My bologna has a first name, it's O-S-C-A-R" for Oscar Meyer

Number 6: "The best part of waking up is Folgers in your cup" (I sang this three days ago!)

Number 5: "When you say Bud" (specifically the Christmas version) for Budweiser

Number 4: "And like a good neighbor, State Farm is there"

Number 3: "Chevrolet, building a better way to see the USA"

Number 2: "I'd like to teach the world to sing" for Coca Cola

Number 1: "You deserve a break today" for McDonald's

If you stop and think, it is amazing how many old jingles you can remember. As I typed this list, my mind wandered back to Saturday evenings and Dad making us watch "The Lawrence Welk Show." I don't remember what I did three days ago, but I remember Lawrence Welk and those ads for Geritol, Aqua Velva and the guy splitting diamonds in the backseat of a car on a bumpy road.

When I worked for TCBY, NBC Executive Pier Mapes spoke at one of our franchisee meetings in 1988 and played snippets from a bunch of old commercials. The attendees guessed every jingle correctly while laughing and singing. It made the impression that jingles are a great way for businesses to communicate ... and get people to remember your product.

Please let us know what are your favorite jingles.