College Hunks From Florida Featured in Nationally Acclaimed Book

Oct. 5, 2011 - PRLog -- Innovative Hauling Company Demonstrates Secrets to Growth in Tough Economy

Tampa, FL –  What do you do when your business or company isn’t reaching its marketing goals? For one, you can forget about might work and pick up tips from other entrepreneurs that have found the secrets to success. Florida-based College Hunks Hauling Junk did just that by analyzing what had and hadn’t worked in the past in order to continue moving forward during the recession that hit businesses hard starting in 2007.

Their success and impressive recession-defying growth caught the attention of author, Sherré DeMao, who was seeking examples for her now nationally acclaimed book, 50 Marketing Secrets of Growth Companies in Down Economic Times. She identified College Hunks as a candidate to interview from Inc 500’s 2009 list of growth companies. The company is a success story example in Secret #4 entitled “Budgeting for Growth” in DeMao’s book.

According to DeMao, College Hunks used a grassroots marketing campaign based on a budget that considered its full available resources combined with “geographic pocketing” to help their business grow. “Targeting your marketing to the point of identifying geographic pockets within your overall footprint is what sets growth companies apart from others,” stated DeMao. “Combine this with an effort that engages awareness and exposure in these targeted areas with grass roots initiatives using all available resources, not just money, and you get a higher return with less money being spent.”

For example, in the book, DeMao shares how the “hunks” stood roadside at strategic intersections with signs that read “Car won’t fit in garage?“ or “Need yard cleaned up?”. This drew attention to their services through utilizing its resources (employees’ time) in a cost-effective and innovative way. “By anticipating needs of customers, understanding where they are geographically and considering all resources, what began as a venture for college guys earning summer-break money evolved into an Inc. 500 company that is one of the largest employers of college students in the nation,” confirmed DeMao.

50 Marketing Secrets is a combination of tangible how-to’s with documented success stories of clients and companies DeMao personally interviewed for the book supported by validated research confirming what growth companies do that stagnant or no-growth companies miss. Her firm, SLD Unlimited Marketing/PR, conducted research, known as the CRISP Principle Study, released in 2004 after the economic downturn of 2002/2003 following 9/11. When DeMao saw the same secrets proven to be true of companies growing in the current recession, she knew the book had to be written to help others get out of a rut and succeed like College Hunks and the more than 60 other companies featured in the book.

DeMao considers College Hunks a good example of a company that places an emphasis on a resources budget as well as a financial budget. “Time, people, technology, and money are four resources that entrepreneurs need to budget in order to reach their full potential,” said DeMao.  “All of these resources need to be considered and allocated on a regular basis in a strategic way, and not just during an economic wake-up call.”

While DeMao chose College Hunks as an example demonstrating one of the secrets in the book, the common factor in all the companies featured is the number of secrets they put into action to realize recession-defying growth. Readers are encouraged by DeMao to re-read the success story examples throughout the book once they have learned all 50 secrets because then they will gain a true understanding of the impact combining the secrets can make in a business and has made in the companies featured.

“College Hunks is putting more than 45 of the secrets into play on an ongoing basis,” stated DeMao. “So I am not surprised at all by their success.”


About College Hunks Hauling Junk
COLLEGE HUNKS HAULING JUNK® is now under the parent company 1-800 Junk-USA® making it the only national hauling and moving company. Every location is fully licensed & insured. As one of the largest employers of college students in the nation, its mission is to empower employees and to become a launch pad for entrepreneurs and future leaders of America. The company helped companies and local residents across the country divert 12,000 tons from landfills in 2010! For more information, including The University of Home Services, visit: www.1800junkusa.com.

About 50 Marketing Secrets – The Book
How are companies, even in the hardest hit industries, thriving in the current recession? How have they grown while others have floundered or gone out of business? 50 Marketing Secrets of Growth Companies in Down Economic Times answers these questions and more with powerful how-to impact that will enable business owners to immediately put these secrets into practice in their business the minute they finish reading them. Based on ground-breaking research conducted by author Sherré DeMao’s marketing firm, SLD Unlimited Marketing/PR, Inc., released in 2004 after the economic downturn of 2002/2003 in the aftermath of the 9/11 tragedy, DeMao saw the same success factors identified in the research proven again during the current economic times.  50 Marketing Secrets shares proven tactics and strategies to build growth companies through these documented success secrets, featuring more than 60 entrepreneurial success stories or examples supporting each secret including Business Journal Fast 50 companies, Inc.500/5000 companies, and locally based companies from coast to coast. DeMao specifically included examples and success stories of companies from industries that were hardest hit by the economy to prove how the secrets and knowing them can make a difference. The book is available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Books-A-Million, as well as numerous other online retailers. Since its release, the book has received national acclaim, including being named a Top Business Shelf pick by Midwest Book Review, a 5-Star read by Armchair Interviews, and  “… a value that is hard to beat … business marketers will refer to time and time again” by ForeWord Reviews. For more information, visit www.50marketingsecrets.com.

About Sherré DeMao
Founder and Chief Marketeer of SLD Unlimited Marketing/PR, Inc., Sherré DeMao inspires millions through her monthly Savvy Business Owner and Me, Myself & Inc. columns, her weekly Monday Motivation & Insight eZine and her national contributing writing has appeared on FoxBusiness.com, Entrepreneur.com, and in Business Insider and Enterprising Women magazines. An expert strategist and marketer focused on entrepreneurs since 1984, her unique perspective and firm’s innovative approach has earned more than 50 awards regionally, nationally and internationally, including being named among the Top 50 Enterprising Women of North America in 2007,  a Small Business Administration Women Champion, as well as a being given a National Leadership Award for small business advocacy.  Her first book, Me, Myself & Inc. - A Synergized World, An Energized Business, Living Your Ultimate Life, was cited as a Top Business Shelf pick by Midwest Book Review.