Marketing Business

Nowadays almost every business, no matter its size or which industry it belongs to, have made their own necessary steps to be involved in the green movement. Environmental conservation is now part of many corporations’ marketing strategies. This is mainly due to the fact that almost every human being in any part of the world has seen and felt the effects of climate change and dwindling natural resources. Documentaries, media news and the efforts of the environmental conservation groups in every corner of the globe have, in many ways, influenced how customers and businesses behave. So now, it is not uncommon for a company to include several eco-friendly business gifts and promotional items into its advertizing plan. One of these items is promotional eco-friendly pens.

Eco-friendly pens which are used as promotional products have been steadily gaining popularity. And why not? Businesses the world over are clearly aware of how much energy it takes to make ordinary plastic pens. In addition, plastic pens can be found in almost every office. Once they deemed unusable, they are thrown into the garbage bags. Can you imagine the number of cheap, ordinary pens that are distributed in trade shows? Most of them leak and will not even write properly. In the United States alone, 106 billion disposable pens are purchased every year.

So if your company belongs to that growing circle of responsible, ecologically-aware businesses, using promotional eco-friendly pens rather than standard plastic pens may be just be the thing to do in doing your share. In joining a good cause, you show to your customers, clients, employees and suppliers that your corporation is not just all about profits. You can build a positive image because in giving out eco pens, you show that you truly care about a very important issue.

Another benefit that you will get from including eco pens to your promotional product lines is that each and every one who receives these pens will know of your efforts. Not only are they getting recyclable, toxic-free items but they will keep in mind that your company excels in showing corporate social responsibility. For customers to be loyal to a company, they need to know that they are supporting an organization who also knows how to care for the future of Earth’s natural resources. Instead of just throwing away your promotional pens, they will most likely use and keep them for many people know that eco-friendly merchandise are of great value.

Everyone has a reason for spending their money. Even rich people who sometimes give money away, have a reason for doing so. No one parts with their money without an expectation. When that expectation is met or exceeded, they are more than willing to spend again or make a referral.

Much of this will seem like common sense, but it is so easy to forget. Many companies in our competitive marketplace are focused on pricing. They want to meet or beat the competition with their prices. Price is only one fourth of marketing. You also have to consider promotion, place (where you meet the customer), and the product (goods and services received). Let’s talk about all four aspects.

Price. Best marketing practices actually suggest charging the highest possible price, not the lowest. What is really the purpose of going through all the trouble of producing a valuable service, if you do not make as much as you possibly can? Of course, lowering the price may increase the quantity sold, but eventually, lowering the price will no longer increase the amount sold, only the amount earned. Find the balance where you are able to charge the highest price, and comfortably meet the demand.

Promotion. How do you get the word out? How are customers finding you? You should absolutely focus 10 to 25 percent of your resources to promotion. Take advantage of the internet, by far the most inexpensive way to reach tons of people with your message. Join industry groups and trade shows, and talk about yourself. Tell people why and how you provide value to them. Obviously, make sure it is in good taste, and use an attractive presentation.

Place. Place may actually be more important than price. Have you noticed that gas prices are different in different locations? Some products and services are more important, and more expensive, depending on where you are. This is definitely something you should consider when determining what product and service you want to offer, and what price you want to charge. And do not forget, the internet has opened the door for small to large businesses alike to meet customers where they live.

Product. Hands down, the most important aspect of your business. This includes the product and all related services. This is where personal customer service can go the extra mile. This is what our customers actually pay for. Your product, your insight, the experience of purchasing from you. It all adds up to something they will remember. What they remember must be an awesome event where they got what they expected plus a whole lot more. Be creative. Offer free gifts, send thank-you cards, do more… You will not regret it.

Keep these in mind while running your business. Pretty soon you will have customers coming in from all over because of referrals from your satisfied customers. If you meet and exceed a need, solve a problem, or are just friendlier than the competition, people will hear about it, and will choose to spend their money with you.

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I was at a pet store the other day, and while my purchase was being processed, the sales girl asked me if I would like to become a member of their “pet friends” club.

I commented on this and told her that hers was the only store I had come across that actually collected their customer’s information.

Another way you can collect information is that any time you make a sale you tell the customer that the product is backed by a thirty or whatever day guarantee. In order to validate that guarantee the customer has to fill out this “guarantee validation” The chances of anyone actually claiming on that guarantee are pretty remote, but you now have that customer’s contact information which you can follow up with an email campaign.

Here is another way you can induce the customer to give you their email address. Why not offer them a discount right then and there, without them even asking for one? Just say “Hey look, if you fill out this little form I can save you five to ten percent on this order before I ring up the sale. Would you like that?” Imagine that: the customer thinks he just bought $100 worth of goods, which he/she obviously thought was a good price anyway, and all of a sudden it’s only going to cost him/her $90. You can also say that from time to time they will get a coupon for any further purchases.

The small business owner needs to understand how important this is, and here’s why – now you have this email list you can put the addresses into some kind of autoresponder program like Aweber. You can find a link to Aweber in my money making site in my bio box below. I use Aweber because it seems to be what everyone else is using, and that’s good enough for me to recommend, but there are lots more you can use.

Instead of a discount voucher, you could just send the customer a simple “thank you for your business” email. I can assure you that this will be appreciated, and will stick in the recipient’s mind.

Look, even if you don’t have a physical store, you can still use the same approach. First job you do, offer the discount, or whatever inducement you are comfortable with. Now you have the chance to follow up with your new customer. For instance if you are a heating and ventilation installer, you could send out a special deal to service an air conditioner at the start of summer, and a heater service at the start of winter.

Many people want to get their appliances serviced; they just never get around to doing it. Send them an email saying “If you want your electric blanket (or whatever else you service) serviced, just hit reply and put “service” in the subject box. I’ll send you a return email and we can set up a time suitable to you”

I remember a very popular song here in Australia a few years back – the first line of the chorus was “Never let a chance go by” I’ve lived by that motto ever since.

Peter Phillips is an author, internet entrepreneur and offline consultant living in Canberra, Australia. He specializes in helping small businesses, mainly those with less than 5 employees.

Services he offers are website design, logo design, video production and mobile optimized websites, all at small business prices. He is a member of the local Chamber of Commerce, a qualified accountant, and a regular contibutor to business magazines and forums.

So you don’t think you need to change your marketing strategy, right? What if you could increase your profits and customer base by running a simple text message marketing campaign? Would you be interested in at least hearing what text marketing is all about? With the increased popularity of text messaging it’s undeniable that there is a huge audience out there waiting to hear about your product or services via text message. Here are 5 reasons why your business needs text marketing:

1. Customer Loyalty: What other marketing avenue, beside email marketing, actually allows you to retarget your past customers over and over again? Radio and TV only places the ad in front of customers who are listening to the radio or watching TV at that time. Plus, there are so many ads going on all the time how are they going to remember yours? Text messages are the answer to more intimately target and stay in contact with your customers.

2. 97% Read Rates: Studies show that 97% of text messages sent are opened and read. That’s because a text message only contains a max of 160 characters, so people don’t mind just briefly reading what your message has to say.

3. Inexpensive Marketing: How much does an ad in the weekend paper cost your business these days? How long does this ad run for? What kind of measurable results do you get from this ad? With text marketing, the cost is a low monthly fee which allows you to directly communicate with people who have already shown interested in your product or service. Tracking the results of your text marketing campaign is easy with the use of coupon codes.

4. Great for Branding: Not all of your customers that you send a message to will respond to it and redeem your offer. However, it was still an opportunity to get your name in front of them so that maybe this weekend, when they are trying to figure out which restaurant they want to go to, yours will come to mind instead of your competitors.

5. High Response Rates: With text marketing you see at least 10%-35% response rates. Let’s break this down to better show how your business will benefit. Say you have a list of 100 customers and you want to send out 4 text message offers in one month. With each offer you expect to make around $20.00 per person who redeems it. So if you blast out 4 messages to 100 people at a time (400 total) and only 10% of the people respond to it, you get 40 repeat or new customers. Now, each of those people were going to generate $20, so simple math says your just made an additional $800 for that month. Keep in mind that a list of only 100 contacts is not that large and we calculated a low percentage at 10% as the response rate. Play with the numbers and see the potential that text message marketing can bring you.

With those 5 reasons, it’s hard to ignore the power of getting a message in front of your customer base with text message marketing. It is a matter of time until all of your competitors start using this form of marketing to get and retain customers, so there is no time like the present to start increasing your marketability!

Signs are a great way for restaurants to advertise because they help with identification, branding, and business development. It takes time to build a diner’s loyalty, so until you reach that point, your restaurant must always be visible so they’ll choose you when they are hungry. Once you have become visible enough to attract new diners, you are much more likely to become memorable as you wow them with great food and excellent service. In general, it’s hard to go wrong with signage, but it should be thought through and designed carefully to be more effective. Here are some of your options as a restaurant owner ordering signage:

Storefront- The best place to display signs is on and around the exterior of your storefront. Most restaurants have large storefront windows, and these are ideal for large window graphics like one-way vision. This material allows you to print a full-color design on the outside that’s attention-grabbing, but it’s see through from the inside, so your diners will still be able to see out. If you’d rather have smaller window graphics, you can choose vinyl decals or even window clings-these can be die-cut to different shapes for a more-customized look. Another great product for the outside of your store is a vinyl banner. Hanging a large banner over your entrance is a highly-successful way to promote a grand opening, holiday promotion, or new special menu. The price of banners is usually quite low, especially when you consider how visible they are.

Inside- Your signage should continue inside your restaurant as well. Larger restaurants, especially when busy, can sometimes be difficult to navigate, so you’ll need to add signage directing customers to the restrooms, bar, waiting area, etc. You can always order posters or even vinyl decals on the walls-don’t be afraid to get creative. At your hostess stand, you’ll want to have a vertical banner that features your seasonal or special menu, so that your guests’ mouths will be watering the minute they walk inside! If you order a retractable banner stand with your custom banner, it will be much easier to move around the restaurant and store for later use.

Off-site- You should be advertising your restaurant in off-site locations as well to draw customers to you. If you have a delivery or catering truck, use car signs so other drivers will see that you offer these services. Car magnets are removable and easy to switch between vehicles, or if you want something more-permanent, order larger car decals to apply to the side of your delivery van. Hang banners at catering events, and even sponsor local sporting events or concerts, as they usually feature banners from the sponsors.

As you can see, there are many different ways to use signage for the benefit of your restaurant. Now that you have an idea of what to do, it’s time to get started. Contact your local sign company or even online vendor today!

Michael Allen works as a Director of Marketing in Boston, Massachusetts. He has worked with both large companies and small local businesses for over 20 years. His vast experience in the field of marketing positions him as an expert in helping businesses expand by using marketing tactics.