Valerie’s World

Archive for the ‘Advertising’ Category

The book “Duct Tape Marketing” by John Jantsch is easily one of my favorite business marketing books. Jantsch takes tried-and-true marketing concepts and breaks them down into understandable, usable, basic methods – suitable for the average business person.

In no particular order, here are my favorite strategies:

1. Identify your ideal client (page 2). This is actually chapter 1 in the book, and for good reason, if you don’t know who you are marketing to, you will have no focus in your message. If your business is handyman services, your ideal client is probably a 40-ish woman who either doesn’t have a man around the house or has one that isn’t getting household projects done.  How you relate to that market segment is completely different to say, how you relate to a single 20-ish woman.
2. Develop a core marketing message (page 20). This isn’t the “mission statement” popularized in the 80s that became a self-aggrandizing joke. Jantsch focuses on setting one’s business apart from the competition. It’s more than just a slogan, too. For Hampton Roads locals, think in terms of WAVY-TV’s “10 on your side” brand. If they didn’t actually deliver on the message, it would be nothing more than a slogan, but the community at large knows WAVY’s history of getting involved. It’s what set’s them apart from the other stations in the area.
3. Match your business identity to your message (page 39). Identity includes everything from your logo to your to your website to your outgoing voice mail message. All the components of your identity should clearly identify your company, it should appeal to your target market, and it should differentiate your firm, as well as support the most important aspect of your core message.
4. Writing an effective ad (page 115). While this strategy was developed with focus on small display ads, the premise and techniques are perfect for Pay-Per-Click (PPC) ads, such as on Google or Facebook. He talks about writing headlines that get read and a powerful call to action.
5. Become an expert (page 156). This is just part of the whole PR chapter, which is quite involved. I’ve seen the same concept in other books, and that is to become a source for reporters when they need to get an expert opinion on an element of a story. The PR chapter goes into detail on how to reach the right media outlets and even outlines the elements of a good press release.

These are just some of the high notes from the book, which is chock full of practical techniques. Jantsch builds on the basics of good marketing practices in a way that the average Joe-business-owner can understand and immediately put to use.

While Microsoft has had some growing pains in developing their “Bing” search engine, they seem to be moving along. In any case, since Bing is on the rise it would be foolish not to add your business to their local listings. It’s free. Free advertising is ALWAYS good.

https://ssl.bing.com/listings/ListingCenter.aspx

You have to have a Windows Live ID, but that only takes a few minutes to set up, so don’t use it as an excuse.

Make sure to take advantage of all the category and services fields, just like on Google Local, the more information you provide, the better your listing will work for you. For instance, instead of just saying “handyman”, spell out “tile repair, cabinets, faucet installation, etc.” Really use the space they provide to get specific to capture more of your potential audience.

From what I could see, the only way Bing Local is handling verification is through the regular postal mail, so it takes a few weeks. Perhaps they will add the instant phone verification like Google has in the future. Who knows?

Take 10 minutes RIGHT NOW and add your listing. And if you don’t already have a Google local listing, add one immediately!

Press releases are a great way to get media coverage of your business as well as links to your website. The trick is getting the press releases to the right people. There are several ways to go about this, some are free and some cost money.

For now, let’s consider the free options. There are many, many sources out there that will distribute your press release for free. I found a fairly comprehensive list of free press release sources in an article on Mashable.

Another source of contact information is to pay for access to a site such as Mondo Times. They maintain comprehensive lists of staff members, editors, etc., for most newspapers, magazines, tv stations, etc. Each record contains the name, phone number, fax number, email address, and street address. The basic membership gets you access to each individual record, but they can be painstakingly slow to build one record at a time. The costs for specialized purchased lists can add up quickly.

When choosing to promote your business with press releases, you may want to consider hiring a professional writer to help compose it. A professional can help maintain the focus of the information, as well as write in a professional format that media folks are used to reading. I work closely with a few professional writers, so please contact me if you need help with this part of your marketing campaign.

By Erin Ferree

Experts urge small business owners to “brand” their business – to use a logo and a set of consistent marketing materials. But, they rarely go into the reasons behind this advice. Here’s a list of some of the benefits to having a professionally designed logo and marketing package:

Not to look so small – Home-printed business cards with perforated edges, or cards printed with standard designs available through Microsoft software or online business card vendors (like Vistaprint) scream, “Small-time vendor!” to your potential clients – and you’ll be similarly compensated.

To increase your chance of getting venture capital or selling a business – If you present a thorough business package, including marketing materials and graphics, your business will look more complete.

To attract more clients – Some clients look for a well-defined company look-and-feel as part of their qualifiers for making a purchasing decision.

To brand yourself – If you’re a consultant, you need a logo in order to build an image and a brand that’s bigger than just yourself.

To convey that you are established – A logo and professionally printed materials show that you are committed to both your business and to your clients.

To give clients a sense of stability – You may not have been in business “Since 1908”, but if you’ve invested in an identity, you’re much less likely to fold in the eyes of your customers. It goes a long way toward building the all-important “trust” factor.

To be more memorable – Forty percent of people better remember what they see better than what they hear or read. So having graphics associated with your business and having consistent graphics on your business materials make you more likely to come to the forefront of potential clients’ minds when they have a need for your goods or services.

To explain your company name – If your company name contains a little-known word or an acronym, the logo gives visual clues to its meaning.

To endear your company name to your clients – A difficult-to-pronounce or -remember company name may make it difficult for your clients to hire you. When potential clients have the need for your services, they can’t recall who you are! But if you reinforce the name with interesting, compelling graphics, they’re more likely to remember that hard-to-recall name, and to pick up the phone and hire you.

To explain an unusual line of business – If your business is nontraditional, or in a hard-to-explain industry, a logo can help to explain exactly what it is that you do.

To show what practices differentiate you from your competition – A well-designed logo can have many subtle meanings, and it can begin to tell the story of how you do business – what special practices make you stand apart from the competition.

To stand out in your field – A well-designed logo and an identity system can put you far above the competition, especially if they are paired with a strong marketing program.

In some industries, a logo is just expected – In the creative services industry, especially, having a logo is an industry standard.

Lastly, do it for yourself! – To show your commitment and for the sense of personal pride it will add to your practice.

These are just some of the benefits of having a professionally designed logo. If your business could use the kind of boost that having a logo provides, then contact us today for a free estimate!