1. Print your best small ad on a postcard and mail it to prospects in your targeted market. People read postcards when the message is brief. A small ad on a postcard can drive a high volume of traffic to your web site and generate a flood of sales leads for a very small cost.
2. No single marketing effort works all the time for every business, so rotate several marketing tactics and vary your approach. Your customers tune out after awhile if you toot only one note. Not only that, YOU get bored. Marketing can be fun, so take advantage of the thousands of opportunities available for communicating your value to customers. But don't be arbitrary about your selection of a variety of marketing ploys. Plan carefully. Get feedback from customers and adapt your efforts accordingly.
3. Use buddy marketing to promote your business. For example, if you send out brochures, you could include a leaflet and/or business card of another business, which had agreed to do the same for you. This gives you the chance to reach a whole new pool of potential customers.
4. Answer Your Phone Differently. Try announcing a special offer when you answer the phone. For example you could say, "Good morning, this is Ann Marie with Check It Out; ask me about my special marketing offer." The caller is compelled to ask about the offer. Sure, many companies have recorded messages that play when you're tied up in a queue, but who do you know that has a live message? I certainly haven't heard of anyone. Make sure your offer is aggressive and increase your caller's urgency by including a not-so-distant expiration date.
5. Stick It! Use stickers, stamps and handwritten notes on all of your direct mail efforts and day-to-day business mail. Remember, when you put a sticker or handwritten message on the outside of an envelope, it has the impact of a miniature billboard. People read it first; however, the message should be short and concise so it can be read in less than 10 seconds.
6. Send A Second Offer To Your Customers Immediately After They've Purchased Your customer just purchased a sweater from your clothing shop. Send a handwritten note to your customer thanking them for their business and informing them that upon their return with "this note" they may take advantage of a private offer, such as 20% off their next purchase. To create urgency, remember to include an expiration date.
7. Newsletters. Did you know it costs six times more to make a sale to a new customer than to an existing one? You can use newsletters to focus your marketing on past customers. Keep costs down by sacrificing frequency and high production values. If printed newsletters are too expensive, consider an e-mail newsletter sent to people who subscribe at your Web site.
8. Seminars/ open house. Hosting an event is a great way to gain face time with key customers and prospects as well as get your company name circulating. With the right programming, you'll be rewarded with a nice turnout and media coverage. If it's a seminar, limit the attendance and charge a fee. A fee gives the impression of value. Free often connotes, whether intended or not, that attendees will have to endure a sales pitch.
9. Bartering. This is an excellent tool to promote your business and get others to use your product and services. You can trade your product for advertising space or for another company's product or service. This is especially helpful when two companies on limited budgets can exchange their services.
10. Mail Outs. Enclose your brochure, ad, flyer etc. in all your outgoing mail. It doesn't cost any additional postage and you'll be surprised at who could use what you're offering.
To learn more Powerful Marketing Tips order the full "Powerful Marketing Tips" report for only $9.00! Contact Check it Out at (772) 335-0073 or visit www.checkitoutinc.com.
Ann Marie Rubertone is a marketing consultant & freelance writer. Her two newest booklets, "The One Page Marketing Plan" and "13 Household Items You Can Use To Market Your Business" tips for marketing on a shoestring budget that can make the difference between success and failure. Check It Out is a customer-driven marketing firm providing design, writing, editing, desktop publishing services, and hands-on marketing workshops for independent professionals and small businesses. For more information, contact Ann Marie Rubertone, Check It Out (772) 335-0073, Port St. Lucie, FL www.checkitoutinc.com cio@adelphia.net
AP - Ford Motor Co. will tell Congress that it plans to return to a pretax profit or break even in 2011 when the Detroit Three automakers' CEOs appear before lawmakers this week to request $25 billion in government loans.
AP - Wall Street rebounded Tuesday, regaining some of the ground lost in the previous session's huge drop, as the potential for a bailout of the beleaguered auto industry helped calm investors. The Dow Jones industrials rose about 250 points, regaining more than a third of Monday's nearly 680-point plunge.
AP - Ford's U.S. light vehicle sales tumbled 31 percent in November, while Toyota's dropped 34 percent, a strong indication of another month of dismal sales for the entire auto industry as Detroit's automakers prepare to state their second case for a federal bailout.
AP - Thailand's prime minister was ousted Tuesday after weeks of protests closed the capital's airports, stranding 300,000 travelers. Protesters promised to lift their siege, and international flights were expected to resume Friday.
AP - A special Iraqi court sentenced Saddam Hussein's notorious cousin, "Chemical Ali" Hassan al-Majid, to death Tuesday after convicting him of crimes against humanity for his part in crushing the 1991 Shiite uprising in southern Iraq.
AP - President-elect Barack Obama pledged quick work Tuesday on an economic recovery plan to include tax cuts and increased federal spending, and told the nation's governors he wants their advice in designing a package to help their hardhit states.
AP - India received a warning from the United States before last week's attacks in Mumbai that militants were plotting a waterborne assault on the city, a senior U.S. official said Tuesday as domestic intelligence officials said they were aware of a Pakistan-based plot.
AP - Shaking hands with yourself is an amusing out-of-body experience. The illusion of having your stomach slashed with a kitchen knife, not so much.
AP - Plaxico Burress arrived at Giants Stadium on Tuesday, facing the possibility that his career with the Super Bowl champions could be over and he could land in jail after accidentally shooting himself in the thigh at a nightclub.
Reuters - U.S. automakers started to submit plans demanded by Congress as the Big Three's CEOs and lawmakers gird for debate over a $25 billion bailout the industry says it needs to survive.
Reuters - The state of Georgia votes in a run-off election for the Senate on Tuesday that will help decide whether Democrats gain a big enough majority in the chamber to ram through legislation virtually at will.
Reuters - Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat was banned from politics for five years and his party disbanded on Tuesday, spurring jubilant anti-government protesters to end their blockades of Bangkok's airports.
Reuters - Oil fell below $49 a barrel on Tuesday, after reversing early losses in response to a rally in U.S. and European shares.
Reuters - India demanded Pakistan hand over 20 of its most-wanted fugitives as a sign of good faith, while both sides on Tuesday tried to cool tensions over the Mumbai attacks before a visit by Washington's top diplomat.
Reuters - An Iraqi court sentenced Saddam Hussein's cousin "Chemical Ali" to death Tuesday for the killing of thousands of Shi'ites in a ruthless crackdown on their uprising after the 1991 Gulf War.
AFP - Thai anti-government activists on Tuesday agreed to end protests that have paralysed Bangkok's airports, after a court stripped Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat of his post and outlawed the ruling party.
AFP - Pakistan offered on Tuesday to work hand-in-hand with India to track down those responsible for the Mumbai attacks but declined to respond immediately to a demand that it hand over 20 terrorist suspects.
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