The answer, of course, is
yes. It's financially
riskier for a business not
to market. And there are
literally hundreds of
cost-effective ideas you can
use to increase your
revenue. Here are five
high-impact marketing
approaches that don't cost a
bundle and that can work for
virtually every business.
When you assess
perceptions, you don't need
to talk to hundreds of
individuals; simply choose 5
to ten clients and contact
them to ask if they'd
participate in a phone
interview. Here's how it
works:
1. Send a letter asking
permission to have someone
contact them about your
company.
2. Have the interviewer
call and ask value-based
questions such as:
What other products or
services do you wish they
offered that could help you
with other business
challenges?
3. After all the
interviews have been
conducted, compile the
information to discover
trends and themes.
4. Send a thank-you
letter to every client who
participated. Include key
lessons from the interviews
and explain the specific
changes you plan to make to
your business based on this
information.
The important part here
is to use what you learn. If
you don't make changes to
your business, then you've
wasted everyone's time. One
company that recently did
this tripled its business in
one year—the owners learned
what people wanted, how
their solution made a
difference, how to present
it, and how to price it, and
then proceeded to make
changes that improved those
areas.
Keys to success:
The conversation with your
customers is just that, a
conversation. Don't fire
questions at them; instead,
have the interviewer engage
in a conversation and gather
as much valuable data as you
can. Remember, it's not
about how satisfied they
are—it's about how much they
valued your product or
service.
2. Creatively package
your
marketing campaigns.
A postcard is one way to
market your business. But
how about putting a small
box together with a fork,
knife, spoon and a custom
printed napkin that invites
your prospect to "have lunch
on us?" Think outside the
box, and your marketing
campaigns will have more
impact.
And don't be afraid to
see what other people in
other industries are doing
and adapt that to your
business. Think about the
little details that will get
attention. I once did a
marketing program to the
food industry that had a
brochure vacuum-sealed in
the same plastic used to
wrap bacon. The same piece
sent to technology companies
used static shield
envelopes. This campaign
earned 96% recognition when
follow-up calls were placed.
Keys to success:
Set a clear objective for
your marketing campaign, and
identify how you'll measure
its success. Then follow up
to measure the results and
adjust the program if
necessary.
3. Get the word out
with publicity. Think
you can't do PR or publicity
without employing the
services of a high-priced
firm? You can! Although a
good firm brings tremendous
contacts and experience,
most small companies can do
enough PR on their own to
spark the public's interest.
One great resource for the
media unsavvy comes from
Shock PR, a Holliston,
Massachusetts-based public
relations firm. Their
product, PR in a Box,
delivers templates, tips and
step-by-step instructions on
how to prepare releases and
pitch stories that will
intrigue the media.
Keys to success:
In one word, leverage.
Though it does happen, don't
expect one story placement
to generate thousands in
revenue. Your success
depends on leveraging each
press release, each article
and each published mention.
Put it all on your Web site:
Create a news page and add a
What's New area on your home
page. Add it to your
marketing kit and send the
piece to clients, colleagues
and professional
organizations. Include a
note in your newsletter that
says 'Recently Seen In...'
And remember: PR is more
cost-effective and more
credible than advertising.
4. Leverage existing
relationships. Most
people know at least 200
people. Do the math: If you
know 200 people and they
each know 200 people, that's
40,000 potential contacts!
Spend time developing
relationships with the
people you already
know—clients, colleagues,
people you meet through
professional networking
organizations, friends and
even family.
Start by making a list of
all the people you know.
Next, prioritize your list
into As, Bs and Cs. As are
your advocates. These are
the people who feel strongly
about you. They're the
"cheerleaders" who would
refer business to you right
now. Bs could become
advocates if they knew more
about you, so you need to
spend time with these people
to educate them. Cs are
those people you don't
communicate with often
enough. You may keep them in
the loop, but they need more
time and nurturing before
they'd refer any business
your way. If there are any
names that remain, delete
them.
Keys to success:
Educate, don't sell. The key
here is to build
relationships. These develop
over time as you create
credibility and trust. To be
truly effective, you must
always be on the lookout for
ways you can help your
network. Start from the
perspective of giving more
than you ask, and your
network will become your
most valuable marketing
tool.
5. Commit to e-mail
marketing. Marketing
through e-mail is flexible,
cost-effective, easy to
measure (assuming you put
the right tracking in
place), and high impact. It
allows you to easily drive
traffic to your Web site,
reach a broad geographic
audience and stay in
frequent contact with your
customers and prospects.
E-mail marketing allows you
to market your services
and establish your
expertise with your
audience.
Use it for newsletters,
new product announcements or
to share your publicity
success—the ideas are
endless. But know that this
flexibility and ease-of-use
can cause problems.
Remember, this is a
marketing campaign. So be
sure to think it through,
develop an appropriate
message, create a piece that
reflects your brand, know
your objectives, and make
sure the information is
valuable for your market, or
people will quickly
unsubscribe.
Keys to success:
Don't be seen as a
"spammer"! Send e-mail only
to those people who have
given permission. When
someone asks to be removed,
respond immediately.
Susan
LaPlante-Dube is president
of Precision Marketing Group
in Upton, Massachusetts,
where she focuses on
creating customized
marketing solutions that
deliver solid business
results for organizations
ranging from solo
practitioners to Fortune 500
companies. To sign up for
Susan's "Matters of
Marketing" newsletter, or to
learn more, visit
www.precisionmarketinggroup.com.