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| Aug 10, 2007 1:47 pm |
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re: re: re: re: re: re: re: re: Marketing help |
Laura Wheeler
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Gee Reg... Is business really THAT bad? If this new marketing approach of yours is going to work, I think you'll need to make the sign BIGGER. And maybe BLUE... that IS the professional trust color, you know! You might lose the latte cup also - makes you look too prosperous. A small McDonald's cup would be more pathetic!
Here is what we've done, and the results:
1. Postcards - total bomb for our business for a number of reasons.
2. Radio ads - also a total bomb - gets our name out there, but does not get the phone to ring.
3. Chamber membership - slow, solid referrals, good networking opportunities, and the source of our best new connections. We have membership in two communities that we market into. We attend networking events, and we stop by in person to meet the leadership every so often, and we offer bits of free help to them as the opportunity comes up (little things - like the day I dropped by and their email was not working - I helped them get it functioning again). I am keeping my feelers out to serve on a committee if an appropriate one is available.
4. Beat the streets half a day in downtown Laramie - got two good contracts from it and some other leads, and made some good business connections.
5. Beat the streets half a day in downtown Rawlins - got some good connections, and ONE contract... but that was the Chamber itself, which has proven very helpful. Key to this is to CONNECT with people - they won't let you "sell" to them unless you can connect on a personal basis first, so we come in and ask questions about their business, get to know them a bit, and find some common ground before we get into web issues, even though I do introduce myself right up front with who I am and what I do.
6. Guest speaker for online or teleseminars. Minor response.
7. Guest speaker for a business startup workshop. VERY good response, and a good reputation builder.
8. Commercial booth at the fair. Long, hard week, with just enough leads and connections to make it worth the effort. Since this is UNTARGETED, it is more of a "get the name out" effort. There have been many unexpected connections with power players in the area, and reinforcements of our legitimacy and professionalism that have come from it though.
9. Booth at targeted events. HIGHLY successful, gets a lot of response and a high number of leads, and is worth paying for a booth and giving the time and other expense for.
10. Online networking through forums, groups, email, etc. Marginally effective. Seems to be fairly time consuming for the return in this particular market, but it gives back just enough business to justify the time.
11. Viral information production. Increasing response. We promote these through our websites, through forums, by personal invitation to certain website owners to carry our eBooks, and through CD distribution at events.
12. Article Marketing - I do this mostly for pagerank benefits, it does help with that. The power is mostly abstract, but it is worth the time and effort to do. It does not work quickly, it is a long term strategy.
There are other things I do also - carry business cards everywhere, follow up on leads, mention my business when it is appropriate to do so when I am out and about, wear promotional t-shirts, etc.
I have also asked marketing professionals a couple of times about enhancing our promotional efforts. Struck out, because they do not "get" what we really are or what we do. We are different enough that the words used to describe our services are inadequate to express that difference quickly and intuitively. No one is impressed or really interested in what I do if they do not meet me personally and talk with me about solutions for their specific business. So I'm on my own figuring out effective ways to make the process of getting contracts more efficient. I can identify with marketing struggles for personalized services.
Laura
Mom to Eight
Firelight Business Enterprises, Inc.
http://www.firelightwebstudio.com
http://www.westernhillsinstitute.comPrivate Reply to Laura Wheeler (new win) |
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