Global Marketing Plus

After my post yesterday on ”Graphic Identity”, several people emailed me and asked where they can find a graphic that can do a good job and is reasonably priced!

The best graphic designer I have ever found, that makes every single brochure or business card she designs “pop” and insures a great first impression is Denise Smith.  For only $50.00 she will design a full color two sided busienss card!  That is an unheard of price. 

Even though I have my own graphics department at my printing company, I send my personal cards to her. When you combine her graphics on business cards for $50.00 and my printing in full color both sides (with or without UV coating) for $49.99, you have a remarkable business card that is still cheaper than most printers charge for printing alone!

You can reach Denise at denise@gocherrybomb.com or go to her website at www.gocherrybomb.com.

If you want your business to sell itself, you may want to redesign your graphic identity to make your letterhead, business cards, website, and other marketing materials as visually dynamic as possible.

Think of every letter you send and every business card you send out and every brochure you send as a mini-billboard for your company.  How do the materials you currently use measure up?  Do your mini-billboards turn any heads?

If the people you meet can’t remember your company name when they need to call you or refer you, if you don’t have any printed materials to follow up with, if the printed materials you have got are amateurish, or slipshod, if you don’t have a website or that website looks amateurish … or worse, all of your word-of-mouth efforts go down the drain!

On the other hand, if when someone needs to reach you, your company name pops quickly to mind, and if that person has your professional looking card, brochure, or other follow-up materials and they can find your website and all the above speaks well for you, your word-of-mouth efforts will be magnified and will multiply.

There is a saying that you don’t get a second chance to make a good first impression.  This is especially true in the business world.  Whether you are meeting someone in person, making a phone call, writing a letter, writing an email, your printed literature, building a website, walking into someones office, or they walk into yours, you only have a few seconds, if that, to make people want to see or hear more.  In fact, on your website, if you can’t impress someone to do business with you n 14 seconds, they move on!

Therefore, it is up to you to create not only a good product or service, but to make sure that your first impression is a positive one!

Often prospective clients will ask for the names of others you have worked with.  Satisfied clients can be of enormous help to you by serving as a reference for prospective clients and customers.  Start building a list of references as soon as you can and have their phone numbers handy to give out as needed.

Even if you know someone won’t care if you use them as a reference, always call to request permission.  Then call when someone will be calling.  No one should ever be surprised to receive a reference call.

Testimonials or thank you letters offer written proof that what you say in your proposals or brochures is true. 

When clients are willing to provide an endorsement, make it easy for them.  Don’t expect them to take the time to compose it and mail it to you themselves.  People tend to get instant writer’s block or to delay writing.  Instead, ask whether they would be willing to dictate a few comments to you on the phone about what your product or service has done for them.  Jot down what they say, edit it for grammar and style, and read it back to them for their approval.

Once the brochure is printed, send all the people you have quoted a copy along with a note of appreciation. 

If you need a written copy of the endorsement, simply mail or email them a copy and as them to return it on their own stationary.

1. Never focus on your need for business.  Focus on how you benefit others.  Present yourself as successful and competent.  Build mutually satisfying business relationships in which everyone wins.
2. Never dump a lot of promotional materials on referral sources.  Do not drop off a pile of your brochures, business cards or newsletters unless a person requests them.  This is a waste of your money and time and is aggravating to those who must do something with the materials, which usually end up being thrown a way.
3. Never speak poorly of a competitor or client.  Whoever is listening will wonder if they will be next.

Want more referrals from friends, associates and clients?  Here are a few things you should do!

• Build your own mailing list of all past and present clients and other referral sources.  Be sure to include anyone who have showed interest in the past.
• Send a mailing to everyone on your list monthly or at least quarterly.  (Some suggest 2 times a month).  Include a newsletter, copies of news clippings or articles, announcements of speeches or other appearances you will be making, information on new products or services, and special offers.
• Keep your list up to date!  Be sure to purge outdated names regularly.  This is especially true if you send emails to your list.  Some feel that it doesn’t cost anything to email a list so why remove old names.  The reason is you do not want to get in trouble from people complaining about spam!
• Be positive and enthusiastic about your business.  It is contagious and will generate business.  People like to do business with others who make them feel confident, positive, and optimistic.
• Build a glowing reputation.  Be prompt, reliable, ethical, polite, and competent.  Never accept work you are not qualified to do.  If you are the least unsure if you can do the job perfectly, refer it to someone else.
• Always send a thank-you note immediately to everyone who provides you with a referral. 

If you follow these tips, your referrals will increase!

If you help others succeed, you will enjoy even greater success!  Take every opportunity you can to promote and refer to those who can be of help to you.  Also help people who are just starting out in fields related to yours.

You might even help your competitors!  It’s estimated that between 11% and 21% of new business comes from the competition.  They refer business out when they are too busy, need to subcontract, or get calls for areas of business outside their own!

The more you build yourself as a leader in your field, the easier it will be for people to refer to you. 

To do this, you will have to do more than just read trade journals.  You could conduct informal surveys or polls or write articles or books on your work.  Send copies of relevant news clippings and summaries of survey results to your referral sources.  With such a reputation, you will be the one people call when they need any resource in your area of expertise.  Hopefully, business is just around the corner.

Also, by joining network and civic organizations, you can become a center of influence.