This Blog is in response to the Forum Topic: Promoting Your Business." Due to the constraints on characters, and my having much to say on this topic, it didn't work out as a reply to the thread, so instead, I'm making it a blog. Reading this is in no way a substitute for spending time in that thread on the forum however, as it is definitely worth the investment of time to read through. The Circle has a wealth of experience, and it is wonderful that everyone here shares so openly, and acts as mentors for those who've not walked in their shoes yet. In the thread, networking was mentioned, as were referrals, and to be honest this is really where businesses grow from. Starting out its just hard, and there really is no short cut. I know people who buy leads. Those leads are only semi-more valuable than the telephone book in my opinion. People hate to cold call, but when you're first getting started there is no substitue for it. You have to build a business base before you can start to generate referrals from it. Flyers are fine so long as you're not just pinning them to a bulletin board and expecting magic to happen. You have to walk into a business or if you're selling to a consumer, you have to find some other way of putting it into their hands. You must have some talk time. Some people are going to wave you off, let it be. Others will take a moment and hear what you have to say. Prepare a 30 second elevator speech that is concise and to the point. Be friendly, be sincere, and be interested in them. Let your elevator speech end with an open-ended question. You'll have to tailor it for your own product(s) or service(s), just make sure it is not a yes/no question, but a conversation starter. Most people (I mean the ones to whom you're speaking to, not you) when they begin talking are going to sell themselves. You're job is to give them an opportunity to talk. If you're just too intimidated to walk into a business, then check your Chamber of Commerce's website for upcoming events. Go to the event, with your flyers in hand, and be sure you have contact information, and most importantly your website address. Your website is going to be your actual salesperson for all those people who accepted your flyer with good intentions to look at it later, but didn't choose to give you their ear at the event. If you're product or service is a business-to-business sale, you are going to have to get over your stage fright, learn how to walk through the door, talk with a receptionist, with your 30 second elevator speech, and with this your open ended question is going to be, "I'm going to leave this flyer with you to give to whomever is responsible, and I will be following up in a few days, who should I ask for? Sometimes they won't tell you (often they won't) because they legitimately do not know who, or they have a company policy not to tell. In those cases, you just have to be tenacious, and keep calling or looking for press releases on their website that will give you some hint of who might be the right person. The good news is, that many will offer it up with no challenge at all. Those are your gold. Make sure you bring something to write on and something to write with, get the info, and when you walk out the door, jot down the name of the business if they don't give you a business card, and the address, otherwise you'll get home with a bunch of Mr. Jones, Sales Manager, and nothing else, and all that prospecting time is wasted. Those that offer are gold, treat them as such. One of those are going to be your next customer. Once you have some customers built up, then referrals are going to become your biggest promotion. You have to stay in contact with your customers. The least expensive way of doing this is via Electronic Newsletters or Electronic Marketing Emails. If you're not capturing your customer's email addresses (regardless of what type of business you have) you are throwing money away. Not only are you missing out on the opportunity you have to bring your previous customer back through your door for products and services you know they will pay for with a special promotion, but you're going to end up spending money trying to advertise to these same people via print, radio, whatever to let them know you have a promotion going. What a waste of resources, and huge missed opportunity. You need more new customers? Ask your previous customers for referrals. Add Refer my Site to a Friend links on your web pages, Add a Forward this email to your friends form within your newsletter, so they just have to add their friend's name into one box on the form and an email address in the next. Get your customers to promote for you. Btw, this is known as viral marketing. It works online and offline. Use your existing resources, and stop paying more money over and again for what you can already tap into through your already established, satisfied customer base. Finally, with networking, all of us in here are linked to one another either through a group or through our own site. Before we head out the door to Wal-mart, Barnes-n-Noble, or whatever other Multinational conglomerate out there, look to your network and see if the same thing you want to purchase is already available to you through one of your Merchant Circle connections. If it is, and chances are if you have a number of connections, it is, then stop giving your money to Multinationals who will never send you a single referral or do one more thing for you than take your money and give you a product or sell you a service. We should be helping one another. Think Circle first, and if its not here, then go outside the Circle to wherever. When you think Circle first, guess what? It's contagious. Even if whomever you buy from does not personally have a need for your product or service, they will remember you if you become their customer, and when the opportunity presents, and someone they know, a customer, a friend, a family member etc., speaks about looking for your product or service, they will send them back to you. As the saying goes, What goes Around comes Around. my two cents.....
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