Do you think you have what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur? Play The Millionaire Maker Game and prove it!
This newly released game was created by Loral Langemeir, a corporate coach and wealth strategist, and is based on her book "The Millionaire Maker Book
The game allows you to attempt to build your net worth as a business owner and takes you through the daily ups and downs of being a real-life entrepreneur. As the site states "kiss your W-2 job goodbye and live the life you want to live, not have to live. Model your dream business after a successful mentor's. Buy a six-unit apartment building. Purchase a share of an oil well. Get sued by a disgruntled employee. Like real life for an entrepreneur, the game is filled with opportunities and challenges."
The purpose of the game is to have the highest net worth by acquiring assets and making strategic business decisions – all in just 60 minutes. It's expensive to try, the board game sells for $179 on the site and there isn't currently an online version (Update: see comments for discounted rate). However, you can register on the site for the chance to play in person at a Barnes & Noble near you.
On a different note, there is something to be learned here on the way this product is being marketed. This is what I usually see with a new product > website > SEO (maybe). What's interesting about the way this product is being marketed is the buzz they're generating with their product. They did this by partnering with Barnes & Noble, a well-known bookstore, and holding live sessions where people get the opportunity to play in person with others. No longer was this being marketed by themselves, it was now a dual effort. It was also different, and these type of events and contests generate great word-of-mouth.
Another great tactic they use are the choice of prizes they give away. They're wealth building educational materials and training sessions, some of which include a) One year of millionaire coaching and mentoring with Loral's Big Table b) Admission to a Wealth Acceleration Coaching or Cash Machine Workshop c) and a complimentary one-on-one Action Strategy Session. Not only are these relevant to the game, they're also cross-selling at the same time by giving away services they normally offer. What can you do in your startup that's similar?
In addition, I saw they also have a blog. It's actually the first entry that appears in search engines when you search for the game. No surprise there - blogs are loved by search engines because of their fresh content. Blogs are also great ways to promote your product/service.
What I also liked about their website is the opt-in box they had for collecting e-mails. This is a great way to build up your listserv and promote your product continuously. Coming out with a new version? Send them a newsletter and so on. However, I would have preferred to see the opt-in box above the fold, i.e. on the top half of the screen. Adding this is a must have on new web sites as well. If your website is about to launch and all you have is a homepage for the time being, take advantage of the empty space and add one in as well.
Finally, the game dominates the first page of Google's search results in different ways. The most noteworthy is the free public release sites. There are a number out there you can take advantage of - the most popular being PRweb.com (Stay tuned for our Do-It-Yourself PR post, coming soon). Sometimes the press releases you write yourself (or someone you hire) get picked up by others and soon your product/service is marketing itself (case in point - what I'm doing!).
I hope these ideas/lessons can help you with your own startup!
By: Yasmine
Bah, who needs to make a million? It's much better to pretend to spend a million!
Posted by: paolo | November 12, 2007 at 05:04 PM