gumption blog
by DRB | Marketing Tips | 08/09/09
Please give your general marketing tips here. Anything from branding, design, customers, selling, segmentation to PR. We may give you a free web link back to your site as a reward! Here's a quick one...
Most companies make the classic mistake of only outlining their services in their promotional materials. But that's about you. The customer wants to read about them and how they can benefit and without thinking too hard about it. If you can show typical/target customer types experiencing the benefits of your services, readers will engage more and you'll get a better response.
Gumption is no different. We're now in the process of gathering lots of testimonials from lots of happy customers. It's better for us that their story is told.
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- So true Rob. I also like to bit about Twitter and Facebook not consuming your normal working life. It is very easily done.They're part of a jigsaw of engaging with people, not necessarily the solution. There's nothing better than a face to face with a good, firm handshake - or sometimes an all-consuming hug!
Don't forget too that there are many online social media tools out there to help make them more effective and easier to manage. Again, each have their own uses and you need to put some initial time in to fully understand their benefits and when best to use them. But do do it!
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- Get on line and network.
Its never been easier to get out there and tell people what it is you do. Twitter and Facebook are the big names with a range of blogging sites also very well established.
Start talking to people this way and you will be surprised at the doors that become open and the new sources of custom that follows.
However do remember this can never replace the day job.
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- 1: Never forget to keep trying new ways to promote your business. Those who try have more chance of success than those who do nothing.
2: Create a consistent branded look across everything you do, letterheads to vehicles is your brand consistent? If not why not ?
3: Remember to also make the most of your free advertising options. Do you send statements to customers or invoices? If so use the bottom of these statements as an area to remind your customers of your other services. It’s a great way to improve your bottom line by getting further customer spend from the ones you have already acquired. -
- Little and Often - just like your mum used to tell you!
Once you have your proposition right (and thats a big piece of work), ensure that you set aside time (30 minutes each day?) to talk to new people about what you do and why you do it better. Building a sales pipeline takes time but its not magic - just remember little and often!
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- Thank you Andrew. A good one.
You've been talking to my wife. I tell her I'm an expert and she ignores me!
I'd also say that whenever you sit down with an expert, challenge them on everything. If they truely are expert, they'll be able to look you in the eye, back up and justify their words with real life experiences and real life fact.
Then, make your own call. It's your business - take ownership, take responsibility. But as you say Andrew, sometimes you have to 'play' and run with the hunch. That's where the fun kicks in. We like that. -
- Benefit from ignorance – ignore the experts!
The mistakes novice entrepreneurs make come from a lack of experience. They overestimate fads, and maybe misinterpret them a thousand times before they learn better.But experts make the opposite mistake. When a real once-in-a-lifetime, revolutionary change comes along, experts regard it as a fad. As a result, the novice makes her or his one good call during an actual revolution (think Google); at exactly the same time the expert makes their one big mistake (think Beatles). That moment is all that is needed to give the newcomer a considerable edge.