Category: Marketing

Following from the last post  – The difference between brand advertising and direct response advertising you’ll see my viewpoint that for small businesses, ALL marketing and advertising should be direct marketing.  Here’s 8 golden rules that you should follow when implementing your marketing campaign.

1. There will always be an offer or offers – Every peice of marketing should contain an offer of something.  Now that doesn’t necessarily mean a discount or free giveaway but is should certainly be very clear about what the service or product is that you’re selling.
2. There should always be a reason to respond RIGHT NOW - If you are using a special offer, limit it by having a deadline date or a limited amount of supply – So for example  “The next 10 customers” or “Offer ends 01/04/2014″ -  Make it clear that if they don’t respond right now, they’re going to lose out on your amazing compelling offer.
3. There will be clear instructions on how to respond - Instruct them in the exact actions that you want to take.  Don’t just put a phone number or a website/email address but put in a clear instruction – For example “To claim your free widget worth £100, pick up the phone right now and dial 01908 760800 and mention “Free widget offer”
4. There will be tracking and measurement – With todays technology, there is no excuse for not knowing where your leads are coming from.  You can use tracking phone numbers, tracking URLS in order to get scientific statistics about how many people have responded to your offer.  If you don’t want to use technology to do this then at least use an offer code that they have to quote.  Don’t leave it to simply asking the prospect.  Half the time you or your staff will forget to ask.
5. Brand building is a happy by-product and not the purpose of the exercise – The opening paragraph and the link to the previous blog article explains why
6. There will be follow up & lots of it - People buy when they are ready to buy and not when you are ready to sell.  Stats show that most people do not buy until about 5-7 follow ups yet most sales people give up on the prospect after the 2nd or 3rd call.  Keep following up, using multiple methods. Phone, email, letter – Have a relentless follow up system in place.
7. There will be strong sales copy – Not wishy washy brochure trash – Forget the corporate waffle and industry jargon. Concentrate on telling the prospect that they have a problem and that you are the right person to solve that problem.
8. Results rule – That’s all that matters

If you need some help putting together a direct marketing leaflet campaign then call us on 01908 760800

Here’s an excellent technique that I learnt recently about how to ensure that you’re maximising your marketing spend without ever going over your marketing budget.

It’s all about recycling.  Recycling your marketing budget. It’s devilishly simple, but very effective.

…Lets say that you’re going to spend £500 on a marketing campaign.  A leaflet drop, a newspaper ad etc. That’s £500 that you’re prepared to spend and take out of your business.

So, you’ve allocated that £500 as part of your marketing budget and your aim now is to get that (and more) back as quickly as you possibly so that you can reinvest it asap.

So, for example, lets say that this spend has returned £2000.  Take the first £500 from the return and put that back into your marketing budget.  Then repeat the campaign.

Now, some business owners will think “Hold on, then that’s £1000 spent on marketing”  – Well yes, it is, but all you’re doing is recycling the first £500.

When I find marketing that works, I want to do it as many times as possible.  If every time I spend £500 I get a return of £2000, then I want to spend as many £500′s as I possibly can.

It’s by this approach tied in with careful monitoring of your marketing returns that you can build and develop a large marketing machine without overspending and letting your expenditure run away with you.

I  told you it was simple!

This morning I had to take my car in to the Mercedez garage for a repair. It’s the first time I’ve visited them, and I have to say, I was very impressed.

I have a Smart Car and it’s on lease, part of the lease agreement is that it’s serviced and maintained at the dealership. Which usually I’m not too happy about.

But I phoned them on Tuesday of this week and they booked me in within 2 days – It was a minor repair so wouldn’t take long, they said I could just turn up and wait whilst the repair was being carried out.

So, chuffed that they could sort the problem out within 2 days, I duly turned up at 08.30am this morning.  I parked up and walked towards the service area where I was met in the car park by a member of the service team.   “Hello, Mr Nicholls,” he greeted me.  “Let me take the keys and I’ll introduce you to Michael our service manager who’ll be looking after you”

He took me into the service reception, introduced me to Michael who completed the paperwork with me.  Michael then showed me to the lounge area and offered me a cup of coffee, offered me a newspaper and then told me that the car would be ready within 20 minutes.

The lounge was immaculately clean, Sky TV was on, there was a selection of drinks, hot and cold available and I had use of free wi-fi

20 minutes later, I saw my car being driven from the workshop to the parking space directly outside the reception area.  Michael then came to see me in the lounge and told me that the car was ready.  We sorted payment out and he then came out to me to the car to check that the fault had been fully rectified and that I was happy.

I couldn’t fault the service.

Now, there’s a big lesson here.  I know that there’s a whole debate about big dealerships versus independent garages and which ones offer more value, but Mercedes have clearly thought through their target market.

They know that their car prices are out of reach of the majority of people and it’s cheaper to get servicing done elsewhere.  But they also know that there are people who can and will pay the prices that they demand.

Those people are used to great service and they are happy to pay for it.  They want to feel valued, looked after and to be made to feel special. For these people price is less an important factor than how they are made to feel.

I came away feeling that personal care and attention was being paid to me, that my custom was valued and they made me feel special.

So, what do you do to make your customers feel special, make them feel that they’re important, as if they’re the only customer you have?