I was recently referred to a site that can search other sites for content that may have been my copyrighted materials. I was pretty amazed to find that a guy in Australia who calls himself a marketing consultant actually took my entire home page and pasted it onto his!
The guy even took paragraphs from my “About” tab and added my history as his own! To add to it, he even had the copyright symbol on his site. I emailed him and said to pull it or I’d take further action. His response? He said he hired another person to write the copy and was not aware it was stolen material.
Of course, it was a pile of garbage he was feeding me, which was apparent because his site was only a couple of pages and the “About” page was not something even a rookie copywriter would fabricate. So what this guy was saying is that he not only paid someone to write the copy, but didn’t question his own background.
In marketing, there is a lot of copying going on. When you decide to pay someone to write your materials be sure you can trust them!
As a marketer, one of the things business owners say that continues to astound me is, “My customers don’t want to hear from us.”
I normally like to ask how they know this. Think about it… they never contact their customers but they somehow know the customers don’t want to hear from them. One of my niches is the independent insurance and large numbers of them seem terrified about contacting clients.
As part of my service, I conduct customer surveys for clients. I always ask those I’m surveying if it would be okay to contact them with updates, sales, new products or services they may be interested in. Over 90% of them say, “Sure!”
Why the big disparity? There are a couple of factors at work here. One is “Salesman syndrome,” which is having a negative image of themselves as a salesperson. Another thing is that it’s an excuse to avoid taking the time to do the work. Finally, it’s ignorance about the benefits of keeping in touch with clients.
The Direct Marketing Association did a study about this issue. They showed that for every month that passed without a company contacting a customer, there’s a 10% reduction in loyalty to the company. If you don’t contact your customers for 6 months, 60% of their loyalty is gone. Wait a year and they most likely could care less about your company!
That’s pretty amazing, isn’t it? Let me go back to the business owners who tell me their clients don’t want to hear from them, they also tell me they have incredible client loyalty. Let’s add things up – No contact + no follow-up + no thank you notes + no special offers to clients + no email communications + no newsletter + no phone calls = client loyalty.
For some reason, the math doesn’t work for me and it won’t for you.
I frequently walk into stores to introduce myself and my services to the owner. Some people cringe at cold calls but I look at it as a chance to get out into the real world to talk to business owners. You can’t really get the full effect on a phone call.
I’ve got to say I am frequently blown away at the condition of many of the stores. The number that are absolutely filthy, dark, dreary and poorly organized is amazing. I’ve seen these stores in all types of areas so they aren’t limited to certain types of neighborhoods. There is not a single store I’ve entered that’s in this type of condition where the owner says business is doing well.
What got me thinking about this was a local florist I called on that was not only dirty but was actually quite dark and dreary with garbage laying on the floor, display cases with windows so dirty it was hard to see the flowers and a display of candles that were so dusty and dirty that they had zero chance of being picked up, let alone being sold.
I realize that we are all products of our environments and “clean” can be a relative term but when you are running a retail business, the reality is that you will turn away large numbers of potential clients if you don’t take the time to get your store in order. Large retailers spend a fortune on merchandising and store layout and often hire talented designers to lay things out.
Why do so many local companies totally miss the boat? I don’t know if it’s lack of knowledge, a lack of ambition, if they are lazy or just sloppy. Either way, the lesson is that if your store looks like a garbage dump, you will attract shoppers used to shopping at dumps.
Social Media Marketing Introductions
By · CommentsSocial media marketing is here to stay. As I see it, it’s much more than a new way of “doing business.” There are a lot of opinions on the value of social media and if they are valuable business marketing tools. Like any other component of your marketing mix. Social media has it’s strong and weak points for use in marketing. In my opinion, the main drawback is the time I see people people devoting to it without a strategy behind it.
The reason behind this post is to rant a bit about one of my pet peeves and that is the way in which people introduce themselves, particularly on LinkedIn. I sort of feel that social media means “social,” which implies a bit of a relationship is being established. I get LinkedIn invitations with the standard “Paul, I’d like to add you to my network. – Bob”
Now that’s warm and personal! I’ve had people I knew several years ago give that introduction. What about, “Hi Paul, it’s been a while! Hope all is well since we worked together. Are you still doing xyz?”
It only takes a moment to be personal and social in social media. Don’t look at me like another name on your list. If that’s what it’s all about, then their is really no reason to have me in your network. Many will disagree with me and say quantity counts but I still look to the relationships.
Paul
Small Business Database Marketing
By · CommentsDatabase marketing is an absolute must in ANY business. You must have some type of system in place for keeping in touch with your clients and prospects.
What information do you have about your customers? Do you keep any at all? Most businesses have little information and know absolutely nothing about their customers. Most do not even collect names or addresses and no idea about database marketing
With today’s technology, there is really no excuse to not have this information. Ideally, you should be able to rapidly access names, phone, address, email address and purchase history. Bonus information includes birthdays, anniversaries, hobbies, where they went to school and their professional affiliations.
I recently made a sales call on a local business owner and talked about how I could help her grow her natural and homeopathic products business. I was already in the store buying a product I needed. I told her what I do for a living. I discussed the importance of getting customer information and asking clients to return. She boldly stated, “I know all of my clients and what they buy here. They will be back.”
I thought that was an interesting statement and said this, “I’ve been in here 5 times this year. What’s my name and what do I typically buy?” The look on her face was one of anger as she blamed employees for not doing their job. It was pretty obvious our conversation was going nowhere so I paid and left the store. Even after that exchange, she still didn’t get my name.
This scenario is repeated millions of times daily. Business owners never get information, thank a customer or ask them to return. With no loyalty established, customers are never asked to return so the business owner dumps more scarce cash into advertising, Yellow Pages, sales people, networking, chambers of commerce. They are doomed to forever chasing new clients. They get no testimonials or referrals and start to wonder why it’s such a struggle.
I ask, “Why don’t you send a thank you card to customers?” The reply, “I’m afraid I’ll be bothering them.”
When you last got a thank you card in the mail, did you think, “I can’t believe this company had the nerve to bother me with this junk!” Of course not.
What if they sent you a card the next month telling you about a preferred client sale that you ‘re invited to? Would you be bothered?
If you have a database, use it to build a wall of loyalty around your clients. If you don’t have a database, create one. It may mean the difference between success and failure. You need a database strategy and plan. If you need help, you will want to give me a call. I can help you make database marketing a powerful component of your marketing.
Dedicated to your success!
Paul
Marketing Blog
By · CommentsA Marketing Mindset
- Marketing pros have marketing mindset. They realize they are in the advertising, marketing, lead
development and prospecting business. They realize they are not in the business that their peers and competitors are in. Their business is the business of marketing their product or services.
- With a marketing mindset, marketing is your top priority. Set aside a certain amount of time every day to attend to marketing. Make it an essential daily task. If you do just one marketing task every day, by the end of the year, that will add up to a couple hundred tasks by the end of the year! Even something as simple as a phone call to a prospect, a fax or a letter to a customer can do wonders for your business.
- Create a marketing system. Focus on the 3 ways to improve sales: Increase the number of first-time customers, increase the dollar value of each purchase transaction and increase the number of times each customer buys from you.
- Increase first-time customers. Focus your efforts on those most likely to buy your product or service. This may seem obvious but many businesses waste vast amounts of money marketing to masses of unqualified prospects. Profile your customer and find others like them using targeted lists or media. Market to those who are ready, willing and able to purchase from you. Build a base of first time customers with outstanding products and service and then focus on marketing to them.
- Focus on ways to increase the value of each transaction. You can add value by bundling products, like the fast food industry does with value meals. Sell the benefits of upgrading a purchase. Focus on benefits such as greater convenience, time or money savings, longer lasting products, or the extra comfort or security that an upgraded package offers. Sell the added value received by purchasing a “deluxe” package. ALWAYS remember to ask for the sales and make recommendations to your customers.
- Market to your existing customers. Once you get a customer, continue to market to them. This is the most under-utilized and one of the most effective marketing tactics. When was the last time a restaurant owner or retailer asked you for your address? How can they get you to return if they don’t know who you are?Send letters, coupons and special offers. Send them thank you notes and birthday cards (you don’t need their birthday, just the birth month). Ask them for referrals and reward them for giving them to you. Start a preferred customer club or hold a special party for your customers.
Be sure to keep your list of customers up-to-date.Use each customer contact as an opportunity to learn more about them, their likes and dislikes. Ask what you can do to improve your products or services. If your customers are businesses, give them leads and referrals and ask that they do the same for you. The bottom line is to build a long-term relationship with your customers and keep them coming back.
- Test and measure the results of your marketing. It’s an investment that, like any other investment, should deliver a positive return. If not, either improve it or do something else. No sense in throwing away your hard-earned profits.
For more exciting ideas on exploding your business, without spending more money on advertising, learn how to get a marketing mindset in your business, contact Paul Flood Marketing for a Marketing Opportunity Analysis to uncover the lost sales and profits hiding in that are hiding in your business.