Earlier this week I went to Piatti’s in the upper village of Montecito and it is most definitely worth your visit.

I don’t live in Montecito and I rarely even go there. I think I have this belief that the town is overpriced and therefore not worthy of my time – but after my experience at Piatti’s I’m forced to reconsider and urge you to do the same, especially if you share these beliefs.

The restaurant has a great atmosphere, totally friendly staff and a tasty and reasonable menu (try the beet salad). They’re new to the Axxess Program offering a free dessert or glass of house wine . I had the Cab and for a house wine it holds it’s own. They also have a cool bar area that for some reason was packed on a Tuesday night…maybe word got out that the Axxess Guy was paying them a visit – but I doubt it.

Maybe it was crowded because of this guy!

Twelve years ago today my buddy Nate & I launched the very first Axxess Program. We printed 25,000 of them, spent all that we had borrowed  – and pretty much recycled 24,998 of them a year later!

Happy Anniversary Hooters ( & Axxess!)

Sometimes I can’t believe how time flies and I’m thankful that I’ve enjoyed the ride thus far.  I always get a little introspective this time of year so I thought I’d share a few things with you that I’ve learned and try to keep in mind:

A short list of things “Not to Do” – probably in any business but definitely not when starting out:

1. Don’t wear sandals to business meetings or show up with coffee or burrito breath, or cilantro in your teeth
2. Don’t take advantage of anyone – ever; it’ll come back to you tenfold in very unpleasant ways
3. Until you are at least 50 years old, abstain from the “martini lunches”; doesn’t matter who you’re with or what they’re drinking
4. Don’t forward your office phone to your cell phone during Solstice or Fiesta
5. Don’t waste your time with gossip or negative talk, instead look for the positive and focus on it

And a few things “to do”:

1. Understand that you’re better off trying than not. On your death bed (hopefully far far in the future) you probably won’t regret the things that you did, rather you’ll regret those that you didn’t do
2. Be punctual and dress appropriately: No one likes a late slob
3. You don’t have to have all the answers nor be the smartest one in the room. So hire & seek out people smarter than you and listen more than you talk (this is really really hard for most of us, especially me)
4. Cherish the process and give it your all but don’t sacrifice your health or your family because nothing is more important

Today is also important because it was on this day, in Florida in 1983 that the very first Hooters opened. And…today is World Vegetarian Day. So now you know.

Go get your new Axxess Book before we sell out and have a great weekend.

Sad but True for Many

Most of my close friends know that I’m a coffeeholic and a burritoholic. I try to keep each to a minimum consumption level in order to stay healthy, but if it were up to me I’d have at least one of each every day.

To satisfy the burrito addiction I love going to Mexican restaurants and last week I tried Chino’s Rock & Tacos on State Street. They’re fairly new to the Axxess Program (Buy One Get One Free!) and are a small company trying to expand via franchising. I think the Santa Barbara & Isla Vista locations are their first franchises (with local owners) but don’t quote me on that. Anyway, the food is good and healthy too. Par for the course I ordered a burrito and it definitely earned my respect and future visits.

The other people I was with both had fish tacos and they looked excellent. On a nice day get a seat outside and enjoy the people watching along State Street. In fact, sitting inside kind of reminded me of shopping at Abercrombie & Fitch across the street – a little too much like a rock concert, hence the name: Chino’s Rock & Tacos.

Enjoy!

You may have previously wondered what rhyme or reason there is to how the Axxess Directory is organized.

It may seem inconsistent or random to you but I assure you there’s a system. Granted…it’s my system so it might not be perfect.

This year we decided to throw some of our logic out the window and replace it with different logic to see what type of feedback we get. The main change we made was that the Directory is now organized alphabetically within each category – so restaurants that start with “A” will be at the front of the Dining Section and those with “Z” at the back, and the like. It’s not rocket science I know, but it was a tough change to implement because there honestly are good reasons for not doing it alphabetically.

This Kid's excited!

We still include the little pocket guide for your reference while on the go and I’ve plugged this a hundred times but look out for our iphone app coming in a few weeks.

We also ditched the “mini guide” because many members said they never used it. And in a way I think it became less useful since we have such a kick ass website and an iphone app (did I mention that yet?!).

You can purchase the new Axxess Membership right now (while supplies last!).

Don’t forget – your current Axxess Membership expires next week on September 30th. The new book has  a ton of new stuff and is currently available to purchase.

Over seventy area schools and non-profits will be fund-raising with us during the next few weeks so look out for a school or organization to support. Of course, you can always donate when purchasing directly through our office or website too.

And if you’re an iphone junkie – stay tuned for the launch of our new iphone app which should happen in the next few weeks. We’ve done our part and now we’re waiting for Steve Jobs and his team’s approval…hopefully which will be very soon.

PS – Apparently there are currently over 200,000 iphone apps available worldwide, many of which are free while some can cost anywhere between 99 cents – 99 dollars. About a year ago, there had been 1 billion apps already downloaded! I imagine today that number is more than double that. (I still do not have an iphone)

A Mr. T iphone app - brilliant, fun and extremely useful.

We like to think of ourselves as marketing experts and over the past few years we’ve realized the best bang for our advertising buck is the MTD transit advertising. Look for them around town.

Send me a photo when you see one  (as long as you’re not the one behind the wheel) & I’ll send you a restaurant gift certificate.

Also, if you can come up with a catchy campaign for next year – one that I like and choose to use, I’ll make you an Axxess Member for life!

It's True: Use It and Save. (Thanks to Kate Schwab over at MTD for sending us this pic.)

This year I’ll miss the Fiesta activities for the 3rd year in a row – I’m disappointed and vowing to be there next year.

In 2008 I was on my honeymoon during Fiesta so I didn’t really give it a thought. In 2009 I was recovering from brain surgery and unable to partake in the fun. Yes, I had brain surgery last year and that’s an entirely different story! And this year I’m unfortunately out of town the entire week.

Each year our deadline to submit the art files to our printer falls during Fiesta. Years ago we used to shoot for Fiesta Friday but that actually caused too much stress and ruined everyone’s week. So in the past few years we work on a Fiesta Wednesday deadline which if all goes as planned allows us to hit our deadline constraints and then relax the rest of the week.

On Tuesday, as we finalized the layout for our 12th edition our computers crashed. How ironic right? But  my team kept their cool and the book went to press yesterday. Right after that, they sent me these photos. Looks like the stress melted away pretty quickly, maybe with the assistance of a little Fiesta liquid livation.

Team Axxess can finally rest after sending the 12th Edition to the printer

Viva La. (Also, for a guide guide to the activities this week check out noozhawk or tixity.)

Looks like the festivities carried into last night!

Axxess Rewards is kind of like this!

Despite a somewhat tough economy out there I’m excited to publish our 12th Edition this upcoming October and can guarantee you it’s again another amazing membership – filled with hundreds of merchants and some amazing offers.

The past two years have been particularly hard on small businesses, certainly nationwide and definitely in our community. State street and Calle Real both have numerous vacancies – many of which were home to previous Axxess merchants. (About 20 of our clients are no longer in business!) And while the growth of new business is not as solid as years past, there is still growth and that’s important to recognize. Actually “growth” might not be as accurate as saying there is still “new life” because there are new businesses still opening up. So despite closures and much talk of sluggish sales, you can look forward to over 50 new business participants in the 2011 Axxess Book. (For you foodies, a few new additions include: Piatti’s, Roy, Billies, Chino’s Rock & Tacos and many more)

Some of these are new businesses while others are established businesses that have been around for years. All of them recognize the need for a steady local clientele and that’s where you come in to this story. Local merchants need your patronage now more than ever and many of them are willing to earn it – by offering an exclusive incentive to you – the Axxess Cardholder.

So try some new places and find some new favorites – break out of your normal habits and turn that Axxess Card into Swiss cheese! For a list of most new merchants that already have current offers visit our new online merchant directory. And when you go to these places don’t forget to tell us about it, we’ll even give you some free stuff for doing so.  Every time you do, you’ll also be automatically entered to win Axxess Dinner & A Show – a $50 restaurant gift certificate and 2 tickets to a performing arts show!

The best time to step it up is when others are scaling back. When your competition reduces their advertising budget, that is the time for you to increase yours.

Two years ago, after our 9th Edition – we lost 74 of our 365 advertising merchants…a whopping 20%! And it hurt. It was cause for concern but we didn’t freak out. Instead I hired more salespeople, invested in more advertising (did you see our “recession proof” ads on the MTD buses?)

"Recession Proof" bus backs in 2009

and built an entirely new website. The result was the most kick ass program we had ever done – our 10th Edition. And, we had our highest grossing year and our most profitable.

This approach was far from conservative but it wasn’t crazy, it was well thought out and well executed. Our “competition” was losing advertisers and was therefore scaling back. While they we’re moving backwards we moved forwards.

Whatever it is you do for a living, consider that point and recognize that now is the time to stand out! It’s not easy but it’s doable. (& for more on this, read the book The Purple Cow)

This year Axxess is launching an iPhone application. It wasn’t cheap for us to build but we’re committed to adding value to our merchants and to our members and this was another way for us to do that.

We created the Rewards Program, which has really started to take off. Locally there’s nothing like it and again, it’s us stepping it up to deliver more value to you.

These investments have only benefited our company and further separated us from the “competition”, therefore passing the litmus test question of “Hey, where’s the Beef?”

PS – iPhone app coming October, stay tuned.

Last week a friend of mine who lives in San Jose casually mentioned to me that he reads my blog and has done so not just once but each week. I was totally surprised and somewhat flattered too. This guy is pretty busy executive yet he finds a few minutes to actually read what I have to say? Unbelievable!

Since I never reveal my sources let’s call this guy “Tim”.

"Tim" can't stop talking about the Axxess Guy Blog

Tim reminded me of how public blogs are and that you never know who could be reading it. He went on to express his opinion that my blog always seems so negative. Really? But I’m probably the most enthusiastic high energy optimist I know! I went to the blog and tried to re-read previous posts with an objective eye but unfortunately I found that Tim was right. Sorry guys.

I try to talk about things that are relevant and interesting and in doing so I attempt to be funny and real.  It”s a balancing act in which my sarcasm often comes across more negatively than I intend, and just like the mass media – the good stuff often isn’t that interesting.

So “Tim” and the rest of you – I’ll put myself back in check. Hopefully, you agree that my photos are funny? Anyway, Thanks to Tim for pointing this out and setting me straight.