Marketing Tips for Business
Issue 1 September
Dear Business Owner:
The success of a business is now more than ever built upon one's ability to market, along with the quality and the customer service that people want.
The purpose of this letter is to give you some practical ideas to help you successfully promote your business. We will offer you weekly tips at our site. Your input is appreciated. If you find these are helpful, please let me know.
First, let me spend a few moments discussing market and advertising. How does marketing differ from advertising? Marketing is not just another word for advertising. Advertising generally applies to the promotion of your business through paid media like newspapers, radio, TV, billboards, direct mail, etc. . Marketing, on the other hand, applies to everything you do to attract and keep customers. That includes advertising, plus, the name you choose for your business, your location, your hours of operation, the products and services you offer, how you answer your phone, how you treat your customers, the colors you use in your business, your prices, your guarantee policy, etc., etc. The list never ends. As we said, marketing encompasses everything.
Having said all that, are you prepared to market your business?
As the owner of a business you realize that people will come to you for a few reasons. They are curious. You have the product. Your staff treats them right. And people know that you are there.
Let's discuss four basics for your business.. We will deal with your mission statement, the demographics of your business, your store front and customer service.
A mission statement is important for you, your employees and your customers. It tells people where you are going. It doesn't have to be lengthy or deep, just pointed. Pick 3-5 words if you haven't already done this that you want people to associate with your business. Create a simple phrase or sentence from these words. I know a business who's mission statement is "To make our customers say 'WOW!'" Everyone who works there knows this. My personal statement is "to build relationships to build my community." Once you have developed a mission statement you have a "foundation" for your business to be built on.
Once you establish your mission statement, you need to examine your market. and the demographics. This is an analysis of the people you reach(or would like to reach.). For example, if you were selling luxury cars, you would not advertise with a radio station or a magazine that only reaches 12-25 year olds. On the other hand,if you were selling music tshirts of young artists, this is quite possibly where you would advertise. Determine who your market is for the product or the service you are selling. "Everybody" may not be the answer for you. If you have a product that is needed by local people, then your advertising would use sources that meet those people. Building a huge web site may not be what you want to do for this type of business. Concentrating on nice displays, friendly employees and town wide relationships ought to be your focus. There are many publications that offer what type of advertising based on age, income, living circumstance, interests, etc., and while they may not be free, they will save you many hours and lots of money in advertising.
A store front to your location. (Location is another topic. Essentially they are three keys to real estate-location, location and location.) Let's separate advertising and marketing. You have your store front and you place a sign in the window. A sign that says "Sale" is advertising and hasn't become marketing. Let us examine your store front and marketing it. Is it clean? Is it neat? If not, a certain amount of people will dismiss you out of hand. Are the window displays fresh and new. Dead flowers and flies don't go very far for drawing people in. What does your sign look like? Brilliant neon signs are great for many businesses but are perhaps not as appropriate for a funeral home or an antique store. We need to separate what is the image we are seeking to convey. Hand crayoned signs while cheap, do not necessarily encourage sales or customer service. Your window, your sign and your displays are all part of your market. I was at a business 3 days in a row last week, and the same candy wrapper remained in the doorway of their entrance for all that time. If people do not keep things neat and clean, potential customers can and often do make decisions on how you do business. Clean windows and entryways are a must. (Much of this applies, even to the internet business shop.)
Now let's talk about customer service. Many people consider customer service an oxymoron right up there with jumbo shrimp. Years ago, I walked into a store and the clerk was rude to the lady in front of me. I handed this young man my card and he recognized me as the owner of 5 stores in the area. I asked him, "do you know what business this is?" He replied "yes" and I told him to never apply for work at my stores! His rudeness was marketing in the negative sense. People associated rudeness with the business. But frequently people will walk in to a store and be ignored. A number of years ago I went to a festival. There were two hot dog vendors. One was reading his paper, not really paying attention to his work and another jumped up and asked me if I wanted to try the greatest hot dog in the area. I think you know I went with "the greatest hot dog in the area!" Marketing is a staff that is ready to greet the customer who comes in. Years ago I taught a class on customer service and was amazed at how many did not understand the simplest thoughts about respect and politeness. What good is spending lots of money on signs and advertising if a person's attitude sends people walking? (Just the other day I watched an example of laziness in a restaurant that the manager said cost them a 2 time a week group of customers who spent $70 each meeting because someone did not do their job.) Even if you are busy wtih another client or customer, acknowledge the new person. Training your people in customer service is one of the best investments you can make. When people look through the window, let them see people keeping things neat and clean, not reading the latest novel.
These four areas while not a complete list give you the opportunity to examine your present business situation. Do you know where you are headed? (Better yet, do those around you know where you are headed?) Are you reaching the market you want to reach? Is there another part of your business you would like to reach? Does your location meet the needs of those who come in? (Remember the first time they come in, they need to feel that they want to come back.) Are your employees friendly to the customer?
Website tip:
KEEP IT FRESH!
Have you thought about a web site? A web site is not for everyone.
But if you have a web site, it can level the playing field between
small stores and big stores, because the internet store is only
limited by the amount of products or services you carry. One of
the keys about web sites is that they must be constantly changing.
People come back for fresh ideas and products. If you wouldn't
keep a product on the shelf that had turned moldy or was dusty
or dirty, don't leave your web site unattended. People will notice.
And it is not the number of hits, but the number of inquiries
or purchases. Hits don't equal sales. (Sometimes you are better
off without a counter-a counter can be perceived as too much traffic
to handle the little guy or too little traffic for the big guy.)
On the other hand, by dealing with inquiries effectively, you
can turn casual visitors into clients and customers.
Print tip:
GO TO THE PROS!
Often an advertiser will try to do it themselves. Every computer
comes equipped with software for artwork, but if graphics aren't
your thing, don't waste the time. A print shop can often put together
a better graphic(that will fit your mission statement) for you
than all the clip art in the world. And what you want to do is
incorporate a theme for your business that will reflect a unified
purpose. Simple things like matching stationery can be a priceless
marketing tool for a service oriented business. So spend some
time in the beginning stages to make sure your print is a reflection
of your mission statement.
Radio Tip:
STRETCH YOUR DOLLAR!
When advertising dollars are small and radio is where you competitors
are, there are a few ways to stretch your dollars. Long term contracts
are good for both the station and you. Longer contracts usually
give you a better per spot rate and many stations ad bonus spots
for regular advertisers. A longer contract gives you consistency
on the air, and opens the door to the station who is looking for
news or open to press releases, etc. Like any advertising media,
a company who does business with you is more open to the "free"
publicity.
I hope you have enjoyed this group of marketing tips.
Sincerely,
Lee Johndrow
www.twinstatebiz.com
www.servantcommunications.com
www.springfieldpride.com
802-885-2885
lee@servantcommunications.com
88 WCFR Drive
Springfield, Vermont 05156