What a wonderful day.

A package arrived in the mail. And inside were two sets of DVDs from Walt Disney Home Entertainment - the complete 1950s Zorro TV series. Two seasons, 78 episodes, and four hour-long "specials," all starring the late, great Guy Williams. (Williams played the dad on Lost in Space a few years later.)

Hours and hours of swashbuckling childhood memories!

I'm in hog heaven.

When I was a kid in the '60s, I had the Zorro hat, mask, and cape. I had the plastic sword that held a piece of chalk so you could "carve" a Z on your mom's clean kitchen walls. I even had the Zorro lunchbox.

But who'da thunk someday I'd possess copies of these shows and enjoy them whenever I wanted?

Each season of the show is cradled in its own "Walt Disney Treasures" black metal box, and besides the discs, each includes additional collectible goodies.

Each box also includes a numbered "Certificate of Authenticity."

And I found a couple of marketing secrets, too. (Of course.)

First...

Deliver more than advertised.

Sure, you've heard this a zillion times. But have you applied it to your business?

When I pre-ordered the Zorro DVDs, nobody mentioned collectible lapel pins, photo postcards, info booklets, lithographs, or snazzy black metal boxes. Or even bonus features on the discs.

It was like Christmas when I opened the package. One surprise after another.

So make every sale to your customers a Christmas-like experience.

Over-deliver.

Second...

Practice "scarcity."

The "Certificate of Authenticity" in my Season 1 box says I own number 20,795 of a limited pressing of 30,000 copies.

Cynics will call this a sales ploy and a buncha bunk.

Well, it certainly is a "sales ploy."

But it's definitely not a buncha bunk.

A while back, Disney released a $30 box of DVDs I was curious about but procrastinated over. When I finally decided to buy two months later, the set was "out of print" and available only through dealers for 150 bucks or more.

I learned a painful lesson: when Disney says something's "limited," they ain't kidding.

If you produce a small amount of product, or even set a deadline on your offer, you add to the item's perceived value and desirability.

Just make sure your claim is sincere. If you don't, you won't fool 'em more than once.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna hunker down and watch an hour or two of Zorro.